Hypothetical baby names

[shwoop.livejournal.com]

Madeline Elizabeth
Colin Alexander
Joshua Michael

WDYT? How common are they going to be in the next generation? What ranking does a name have to be on the charts before you're going to find one (/four) in every class? PS. Boyfriend's last name is Ukrainian and highly uncommon, but sounds like it's spelled.

Comments

[sandtree.livejournal.com]

Joshua is really, really common. It's ranked #3. He would almost definitely constantly be in classes/places with other Joshuas. Colin is much less common, not even in the top 100. Madeline is getting more common, but it's still nowhere near the level where you'd find one in every class.

Personally, I'd say if you're worried about popularity, avoid any name in the top ten. If you really want to be sure, avoid the top twenty. There's always a chance that they'll be in a class with someone else who has the same name, but the likelihood of that drastically decreases if you move out of the top ten.

[lilacmermaid.livejournal.com]

I like just about all of these names, although I like the boys names better. I'm not a fan of Madeline, though ... even if it isn't as common as Joshua, it feels like it is because I see it as trendier.

[xpaniic.livejournal.com]

Joshua and Michael have both been in the top 5 for the last 5 years according to parents.com.

Other than that I think Colin and Madeline should be fine and not have one in every class, but I think Madeline will be there before you know it.

[crzydimond.livejournal.com]

I love them all.

[0o-faerie.livejournal.com]

I think they are all great names. The only think is that I'd like Madeleine even better than Madeline =)
You can check ranking/popularity here (http://babynamewizard.com/namevoyager/lnv0105.html), if you want =).

[eleanorgrace.livejournal.com]

One thing to keep in mind is that the most popular boys name is actually a lot more common than the most popular girls name.

The last time I checked, the number one name for boys was used on like 2% of boys born that year--or 1 in 50. So the odds of having a couple of others in your kid's class are pretty high. Divide that down a little bit if you're choosing a name with nicknames; I don't think it's a crisis to have a Nick and and Nicky in the same class, for instance (though I might be alone on that).

The most popular name for girls, on the other hand, is used on slightly less than 1% of girls born that year, or less than 1 in 100. So your odds of seeing a couple are still high but not as ridiculous.