Upswing Baby Names

Earlier this week, we covered which girl names were new to the top 1000 in 2012, and now the focus is on the boys.

Just like with the girl’s list, not all names new to the top 1000 are included in this list. For example, names that were too similar to already popular names, such as variant spellings, were excluded. The purpose of this exercise is to glean upcoming trends.

Before we get to 2012’s top 1000 newcomers, here is how 2011’s newcomers did:

Wow! The boy’s outshone the girl’s this time, with 70% of 2011’s newcomers ranking higher in 2012. One of the big winners was Otto. Crosby continues to soar.

A little side-note: Last year I speculated that I was unsure if Cristiano would soar or fizzle. The name appears to bridge an old trend (the Chris family, being the Portuguese cousin of Christian) with a new trend (o-ending names), and I wasn’t sure which trend would win out. For a moment, there was some discussion in the blogosphere that Christian would become more popular due to the Fifty Shades of Grey series. (See the links under “Sources” after this post.*)

I had my doubts. The idea of moms naming their sons after a sadomasochist seemed far-fetched regardless of the book’s popularity. Also, no matter how successful the novel, a novel isn’t enough to revive any name past its fashion-peak. While Christian is less dated than other Chris names, it peaked a little over five years ago. The Chris trend appears to be on the way out after a couple of strong decades.

Based on the 2012 baby name numbers, I was right.** Christian’s popularity doesn’t seem affected by the books. Christian continues its gentle fall, ranking at #33 in 2012, down from #30 in 2011. In the end, trends usually win. As Christian declines, the o-ending wasn’t enough to keep Cristiano in the top 1000 for another year.

Now on to the 2012 newcomers:

Apollo – Debuted at #993. First time charter. Ancient mythological names are coming into style for girls, clear by the growing popularity of Athena (#247) Daphne (#420) and Penelope (#125). Now these names might be catching on with the boys too. Apollo is one of two Greek mythology names on this list.

Jionni – Debuted at #870. First time charter. “Never underestimate the impact of reality TV,” I keep telling myself. Frankly, I don’t understand it, but apparently many parents are influenced by reality TV when it comes time to pick a name. Jionni LaValle is reality TV star Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi’s fiance.

Neymar – Debuted at #699. Anytime I see a name hit the top 1000 for the first time, and the debut rank is higher than #750, I take notice. Like baby name phenomenon Iker, Neymar most likely reached notoriety thanks to a foreign football (or as Americans call it soccer) star. Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior is a Brazilian football star, known mostly by his first name.

If Neymar repeats the baby name success of Iker, it could be in the top 300-350 within three years. Iker hit the chart in 2010 at #646 and continues to be one of the fastest rising boy names. In 2012 it ranked at #230.

Oakley – Debuted at #880. Last charted in 1920. This name spent some time at the bottom of the top 1000 over a century ago, and seems like a good revival candidate. This surname may be most familiar from Annie Oakley. Oakley is also a place-name and a manufacturer of sunglasses. Perhaps Americans were inspired by the British. In the U.K. Oakley was close to the top 200 at #222 in 2011.

Thiago – Debuted at #862. First time charter. This Portuguese name fits the o-ending trend, but also might hint at an emerging trend: the TH beginning. The TH beginning is found in fashionable Theodore (#197), and Thaddeus which has held steady in the 900s (a #903), but I feel is a name to watch. But the biggest influence could be international football (or soccer in America). Thiago Silva is a Brazilian football player.

Titan – Debuted at #961. First time charter. This is yet another ancient mythological name on the newcomer list. This name’s first-time chart presence could be linked to the growing popularity of Titus, which ranked at #360.

Last year’s list represented some established trends: n-ending names, o-ending names, surnames, and the Max family. This year this list is a little different. The boy newcomers seem inspired by pop culture events such as Brazilian football (soccer). A new trend for boys, Greek mythology is also represented on the boy’s list. In time, we will know which of these names will climb and which ones are one-shot deals.

Readers: Which new top 1000 boy name do you like best?

*Sources:

http://www.fashionnstyle.com/articles/5957/20130412/hot-baby-names-2013-list-revealed-christian-fifty-shades-grey-movie-casting-pregnant-kate-middleton-choose-one.htm
http://shelf-life.ew.com/2012/11/30/fifty-shades-of-grey-baby-names/
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/04/05/baby-names-2013_n_3016970.html#slide=2301308
http://nymag.com/thecut/2013/04/would-you-name-your-baby-after-fifty-shades.html
http://www.cosmopolitan.com/celebrity/news/2013-baby-names-weird

** While I may have been right about Christian’s popularity, I could be wrong about the ‘Fifty Shades’ influence on baby names. The protagonist’s last name, Grey, has gained some attention as a by name. Grey is still outside the top 1000, but has increased a little on BabyCenter. This growing popularity, of course, is probably not entirely attributed to the character, but also the growing popularity of Grayson and Greyson, which were at #85 and #174, and trending upwards.

Photo credit: By Fotos Gov/Ba (Neymar) [CC-BY-2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Last week, the Social Security Administration released the top baby names for 2012. Today I will share some names that are either completely new to the top 1000 (since 1880, the earliest year data is available) or are returning after being absent for decades.

Not every top 1000 newcomer was included in the list, only names that seem promising. Alternative spellings of more popular names are not included. Promising newcomers are similar to fashionable names, excluding names that are too similar (such as Aubriana, which is grouped into the Aubrey family).

Before we list the 2012 newcomers, here is how the 2011 newcomers did:

Overall, 2011’s top newcomers are doing pretty well. The big success stories are Hattie and Nova. Juniper and Temperance are doing respectably well. On last year’s poll (which is still open) Hattie and Juniper are the clear winners (at time of writing).

Now on to the 2012 newcomers:

Adley – Debuted at #731. First time charter. With a debut this high, I suspected there must be a pop culture connection, and I was right. Adley was the name of a female contestant on The Voice last year. With the high debut accompanying a pop culture reference, Adley exhibits a big sign of a fad name.

Nameberry lists Adley in their database as masculine, but considering its similarity to Hadley (#130 and rapidly rising), and loose similarity to Adele (#536 and rapidly rising) Adley makes sense as a feminine name.

Annalee – Debuted at #910. First time charter. This combo of Anna + Lee represents compound names which are beginning to get some attention. For this reason, this name seemed significant despite being similar to the conventional hit, Anna (#35).

The sound is very modern and lively. Annalee is perfect for expectant parents with clashing tastes since it could be a compromise between modern and traditional. But I’m not completely convinced Annalee has long-term potential only because Avianna / Aviana from last year’s list, another “anna-name”, wasn’t one of the top performers.

Coraline – Debuted at #823. First time charter. This is one I could have easily imagined on last year’s newcomer list. Just like Juniper from last year’s list, Coraline got some love on name blogs over the past couple of years. Coraline is familiar to many Americans from the 2009 animated horror/fantasy film based on the 2002 book. There are also names very similar to Coraline that are popular.

The similar Cora has soared in recent years, ranking at #155 in 2012, a 169 place increase from its 2008 rank, #324. The similar Caroline is about 10 years past-peak, but still ranked in the top 100 at #79 in 2012.

Emmalynn – Debuted at #910. First time charter. “Wait –” some of you might be thinking, “isn’t this just another variation of Emmeline or Emmaline* which are very similar to Emma?”

That is a possibility, but more likely Emmalynn is a combination of Emma + Lynn, which further supports the emergent compound name trend. BTW — Emmeline is still outside the top 1000 and Emmaline just re-entered the chart at #890 after being absent since 1915 when it ranked at #990.

*Emmaline - was almost left off because it is very similar to Emmalynn and is yet another “emma-name”. (Emma rose slightly to #2 in 2012). However, Emmaline deserves some mention because it is another example of how some trends (in this case emma-names) endure.

Emory – Debuted at #881. This is a first time charter for girls, but was in the boy’s top 1000 as recently as 1974. This name re-entered the top 1000 for boys as well. I wondered why this name charted in 2012 on both genders. My research didn’t turn up any cultural significance for Emory in 2012. The reason Emory hit the top 1000 is a mystery to me, perhaps the sound is en vogue or Emory has personal significance for people. Emory is a place-name, being the name of several towns, geographical landmarks, and a university in Georgia.

Estella / Estelle – Debuted at #882 (hit #1000 in 2010) and #950. Last charted in the 1960s (Estelle) and 1970s (Estella). These names are in the same family as vintage hit Stella (#62), which means “star”. For this reason, Estella / Estelle almost didn’t make the cut, because names that are in the same family as already popular didn’t always make the cut.

But the vowel beginning seems to distinguish Estella / Estelle enough. And I feel Estelle, which is more removed from Stella, is the real one to watch. Estella ranks higher and seems to have more short-term potential, but I wouldn’t discount Estelle. While super popular ella-ending names may still have a few years at the top, when people finally tire of these names, the more sparse elle-ending names may see new life.

Everly – Debuted #906. First time charter. This modern take on Beverly is another path to fashionable Eva (#86) or Eve (#558) and has an energetic feel.

Jessa – Debuted at #998. This is one of those surprises. The surprise is not that Jessa is in the top 1000, the question is, what took Jessa so long?

If the huge popularity of Jessica didn’t inspire Jessa’s arrival 15-20 years ago, one would think the moderate popularity of Tessa (which has been in the bottom top 250 for about 20 years) would have spawned enough Jessa’s to push the name into the top 1000 5-10 years ago, but that never happened. The future for Jessa is uncertain, but one thing is for sure: Jessa has conventional style.

Milena – Debuted at #962. This is new to the U.S. charts but has seen some success in other countries, most recently Poland where it ranked at #20 in 2012 and has been gradually climbing their chart. The lovely smooth sound is popular among U.S. parents.

Winter – Debuted at #769. This spent some brief time in the top 1000 between 1978 and 1979 and then disappeared from the ranks until last year. Now that seasonal / calendar inspired names such as Autumn #68 and June #435 have become stylish again, parents are seeking less conventional representations of this genre, such as January and September. Winter has a good chance of sticking around a little longer this time.

Zahra – Debuted at #952. This is an Arabic name with the trendy Z that has seen some moderate success in France where it ranked #372 in 2010.

This list represents a good mix of modern and old-fashioned. At least three of the names have styles that seem to tie the past to the present: Annalee, Everly, and Jessa. And the two compound names suggest an emerging trend. The big letter seems to be E, a vowel that has always been prominent in many names, but could be getting more popular as a starting letter.

Within a week, the boy’s top 1000 newcomers will be unveiled.

Readers: Which new top 1000 girl name do you like best?

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