popularity question

[ilovehounds.livejournal.com]

All of the online lists and books about the most popular names for babies lead me to wonder...
Do you think most people look at those lists to figure out what to name their babies or what NOT to name their babies?

For me, it would be a list of names to avoid!

Comments

[ilovehounds.livejournal.com]

As a public school teacher, I'm used to having five Katies, 3 Ethans, and a handful of Madisons each year. I don't want my child to be one of those.

[dancing-crazy.livejournal.com]

It is for me too. I think for most people it's probably a way to see HOW popular the name will be. Estimate the damage, if you will. So say we have two parents, and their list of names is Emily, Madison and Mackenzie for a girl and Caleb, Jacob and Michael for a boy, it probably wouldn't matter for them. But for me, names like Mollie, Kate, Lily, popular names but not ones that are used on every second kid in the grade, it's a good way to know where you stand. I was surprised to see Mollie less popular than I thought, and Lily more popular. A way to sort the list out, I think.

[bopeepsheep.livejournal.com]

The problem with this lies in not being able to predict how other people are thinking along the same lines - we looked at lists with a similar eye, and ultimately picked a boy's name that didn't appear on the Top 75 for the last few years. (The girl's name we had in mind is in the Top 75, but low, and short of it reaching Top 10 we were going to use it anyway.) We used it - and within the space of a year it was in the Top 75, the short form (which is how my son is actually known) is in the Top 50, and we've met quite a few his age or younger. Which is weird to me because when we named him everyone remarked on the rarity of it and how they'd never met one, or only ever met one in their lifetime etc - I had only met one myself, way back when I was at school. Go figure.

[givesmevoice.livejournal.com]

I do and don't avoid the names on the list. I mean, sometimes there are names that you fall in love with, that happen to become really popular. Most people would still go ahead and name their child that. but, I wouldn't go through the list trying to find all the most popular names; that's just silly.

although, this isn't really a problem for me right now, seeing as I'm only 19 and a WORLD away from having babies.

[dolcedaze.livejournal.com]

I avoid them- I would never use a name in the top 100, or one that is growing too quickly in popularity, even if it's not very popular right now (like any name with a sharp "spike" on babynamewizard).

But, I would rather see someone use one of those names than make up some crazy one with fourteen extra y's and k's! My favorite names are old fashioned ones that haven't made it back into the top 1000 but don't sound like someone in a nursing home, either.

[elemmennope.livejournal.com]

For me, it's definitely a list of names to avoid. A lot of people really don't seem to care though. And a lot of people just don't seem to have that much foresight, and only realize they are hearing Mackenzie/Ethan/Emma everywhere AFTER the baby is born. Too late.

It's nice to have such resources available these days -- more people should take advantage. My mom has told me she NEVER would've named me Jennifer in the 70s if she'd had such a list available to her. Amongst her group of friends and neighbors, nobody had a Jennifer, but five years later I entered kindergarten with 5 other girls by the same name. Sometimes you really just need to look a little deeper and what might matter down the road. If the stats say a name is being used a lot, it is!

[ilovehounds.livejournal.com]

*nod* i'm not suggesting freakish names or spellings, but there are less common names.

i have five katies in my classes this year and they all spell it differently. *grumble*

[so-there.livejournal.com]

I won't use a name in the top 500. so far, neither name I've used has been in the top 1000 (though the girl name I had picked for my second, who turned out to be a boy, was about 600-something.)

[colin-chaotic.livejournal.com]

Thing is, in the past the names on the top 100 list? Used to be really common. Now, the names at the top are about half as common, or less, than before, and get to the top simply because they're spelled correctly, not yoonikly.

I pick the names I like, I don't actually look them up on any list. It's like how people absolutely love a band, then they realize that everybody else does too, but they're obviously superior to everyone else so they don't like the band anymore.

(Sorry, I'm not trying to attack anyone with that, it's just a little bit of a hot button issue with me. If you don't want your kids names to be on the top whatever list, it's entirely your choice.)

[elemmennope.livejournal.com]

I understand what you're saying, I get really irritated with love-to-hate-mentality over bands and movies etc too. Everyone likes to be the first who was into something, and then the first to declare it old news, not worth their time anymore, looking down on anyone who would like any kind of popular music.

The thing is with names, it's about more than that. There is a real practical reason to desire an uncommon name for your child. At least for me there is; I'm not interested in being pretentious about my choices. I just think a name serves a purpose, and that is to identify a single person without confusion. You have a classroom with multiple Emma and Ethans -- I see those names as failing their primary purpose.

Hahaha, my own hot button issue. Anyway, I'm just saying I see your point, but this is why I don't agree.

[pixiequeen112.livejournal.com]

I don't really want to name my children in the names of the top 100 list. I usually go for nice unique names like Sapphira and Brielle (but I hear that it's getting pretty popluar though.

[crazy-confuzled.livejournal.com]

to me those are the names to stay away from because i want my children to have uncommon names...unfortunately the name Jaeda is becoming more and more popular and that's my daughters name

[knightanika.livejournal.com]

For me, I dont care if a name is popular or not, if I like it, I'll be using it. ^_^

[sageharper.livejournal.com]

I like to have a grasp of names popularities. It probably is lame to care so much, but I just can't help it. Also as a sheer morbid curiosity thing.

It kinda helps narrow down my list, popularity isn't the biggest deal for me, but when having to choose between to names then I generally go with the least common.

I wouldn't use unusual names just for the sake of it, that's a bit pretentious, but having grown up with such a common given name I can see the benefits of unusual names and would like my children to have that.

[estrella-jenita.livejournal.com]

for me it depends on how much i like the name...and often you dont think the name is popular until your kid comes hom telling you theres another person in their class with the same name... but genreally i avoid pop. names