Friday, May 10, 2013

JOFFREY, HOWEVER, REMAINS OUTSIDE THE TOP THOUSAND: Because I too love our readership -- and because I want you to blow your Friday even further -- ten years to the day after I first had to commit on this question, the Social Security Administration has released its Popular Baby Names data for 2012.

Jacob (14 straight years) and Sophia (2d time) are the most popular overall;&nbsp Major and Gael, and Arya and Perla, are the highest one-year risers for each sex. Lots of -lynns rising for girls: Raelyn(n), Ad(a)/(e)lyn(n), Marilyn; on the boys' side, aspirationals forever rising: Major, Maverick, Knox, Messiah, King, Remington, Lincoln, and, um, Archer among them.

Outside the top 1000, the Baby Name Wizard blog says to keep an eye on Cataleya and all its variants, based on the film Colombiana, as well as "liquid names" -- "they flow smoothly, like water down a glass streambed with no rocks or branches to impede its path. You can speak names like Anaya, Aliya, and Eliana with every sound drawn out long, and without visibly moving your mouth. Pure flow." [Our 2012 discussion is here.]

13 comments:

  1. Chuck9:38 AM

    Kind of weird to see the name "Messiah" trending up strongly.

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  2. Adam B.10:10 AM

    Yes, Messiah has risen.

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  4. Meghan12:11 PM

    My kids names are holding steady in the high 600s and mid 400s, respectively. I am pleased with that.

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  5. He (or she) has risen indeed!

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  6. My daughter is named Lucinda, and I am totally fine with this:

    "Lucinda is not in the top 1000 names for any year of
    birth in the last 13 years."

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  7. My name has been steadily decreasing in popularity since 2000. Interesting. I feel like it hit its peak about 10 years after I was born. I'd guess it's not quite old-fashioned enough to trend again for a while.

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  8. jannrasp8:35 PM

    I have a feeling we might be seeing more girls named Cosette in a few years. I have known exactly one (American) Cosette in my life.

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  9. Thank goodness, Joseph is rising back up a bit.

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  10. Arg. 10 years ago we named our son Greyson, which at the time was 706, and Grayson was 321. They have both risen dramatically since, with Greyson now 174 and Grayson 85! This trend better stop soon.

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  11. Adam B.12:52 PM

    Other names are passing it ... on the right.

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  12. KCosmo7:30 PM

    Snort!

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  13. KCosmo7:31 PM

    Cosmo Girl (who turned 10 just a few days before Adam's daughter)'s name wasn't on the girls' list until 3 years ago. It then spent two years in the 700s and is now sitting in the mid-500s. I find this strange, but other medieval craft guild girls' names have skyrocketed, so I shouldn't be surprised...

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