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Help[Opinions] Popularity
How much does the popularity of a name influence your decision to use it or discard it? Lets say that one of your favorite names climbs into the top 100 or top 50 or top 10 (or perhaps has always been there), would you still use it or look for a less popular name that you like? Do you care that your child may have to be referred to using the initial of their last name in school because there are more than one like Jacob H., Jacob R. and Jacob D.
This message was edited 2/21/2010, 9:35 PM
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I'd still use it. In fact I'd perfer it to be relatively popular or at least recognizable. If it's the number one name in the world and I really like it I'd use it. We can always come up with a unique nn if the child wants.
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I have a common name, and it really bothered me growing up, so I'd try to avoid names in the top 100, especially the top 50. If I loved a name and absolutely wanted to use it despite its popularity, I'd use it as a middle name.
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It doesn't matter to me. Just because a name is popular doesn't mean that there are tons of kids with it. For example, this site lists Jacob and Emma as the two most popular names of 2008, but only 1.036% and .904% of people are named these. I think there is a lot more diversity in naming currently than there was in the past. The year I was born over 3% of boys were named Michael, for example.
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Popularity influences me somewhat. For example, I adore the name Emily. However, I don't ever want my child to be in a class with 5 other Emily's. So I do care if the name I choose is say in the top 50 most popular names, but outside of that it doesn't influence me as much.
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Nope.
It doesn't really matter to me...I'm not going to avoid a name that I love or a name that is important to me just because a mere 1 in every 100 or so kids bears the same name--hell, Emily was my favourite name for years! History and usability matters more to me than some government ranking. My favourite names (Charlotte, John, James, etc) are in the Top 50 here, and I don't even think that I've met a little John or Charlotte recently. This isn't the sixteenth century, where everyone was named John, Mary, Anne, etc. or even the fifties. This emphasis on popularity has completely warped the way we named and not being popular has become increasingly popular. You'll never get a class with five Jacobs nowadays...you might get one or two, or possiby none at all. Popularity shouldn't be the main objection to a name, as popularity changes...a name has to last from birth certificate to gravestone. Popularity only counts for one year.
It doesn't really matter to me...I'm not going to avoid a name that I love or a name that is important to me just because a mere 1 in every 100 or so kids bears the same name--hell, Emily was my favourite name for years! History and usability matters more to me than some government ranking. My favourite names (Charlotte, John, James, etc) are in the Top 50 here, and I don't even think that I've met a little John or Charlotte recently. This isn't the sixteenth century, where everyone was named John, Mary, Anne, etc. or even the fifties. This emphasis on popularity has completely warped the way we named and not being popular has become increasingly popular. You'll never get a class with five Jacobs nowadays...you might get one or two, or possiby none at all. Popularity shouldn't be the main objection to a name, as popularity changes...a name has to last from birth certificate to gravestone. Popularity only counts for one year.
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My name was in the top 15 the decade I was born and the top 10 the decade after, and I never liked how common it was. I wasn't a big fan of being "Megan C" or "Megan-that-plays-saxophone" or whatever.
So I would be inclined to avoid popular names. Preferably nothing in the top 100, though if something was hovering around the bottom and didn't seem likely to jump I'd use it if I really loved it. But there's so many names I love and wouldn't mind using on kids that I'd prefer to use the less common ones over the more popular ones.
So I would be inclined to avoid popular names. Preferably nothing in the top 100, though if something was hovering around the bottom and didn't seem likely to jump I'd use it if I really loved it. But there's so many names I love and wouldn't mind using on kids that I'd prefer to use the less common ones over the more popular ones.
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It does influence me
I get miffed when a name I love starts climbing the charts, because I was always an Initial kid growing up and I really hated it.
I'm ok with sharing names with friends (my BFF and I both love the name Ruby for example) but I do cringe a bit to see a classful of Rubys. I get possessive of some of my names. I do start looking for alternatives when I start to see a name I like break the top 100 or if I see local BAs with the name everywhere. I'm just shallow that way.
I get miffed when a name I love starts climbing the charts, because I was always an Initial kid growing up and I really hated it.
I'm ok with sharing names with friends (my BFF and I both love the name Ruby for example) but I do cringe a bit to see a classful of Rubys. I get possessive of some of my names. I do start looking for alternatives when I start to see a name I like break the top 100 or if I see local BAs with the name everywhere. I'm just shallow that way.
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None, really
If it's a name I love and want to use for my child, I don't mind that they're quite likely to encounter someone else with their same name.
If it's a name I love and want to use for my child, I don't mind that they're quite likely to encounter someone else with their same name.
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I don't think there's any way I can answer this question even close to realistically before I'm pregnant and actually about to name a child with someone else.
I'd tend to think I'd go for less popular names sooner than more popular ones.
I'd tend to think I'd go for less popular names sooner than more popular ones.
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It does affect things for me. I wouldn't want my child to have an incredibly popular name. Depending on the situation, I might make exceptions for honoring, or other important meaning, but I hated having teachers assign me various nicknames because I had a common nickname.
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Popularity doesn't influence my choices much, as I tend to pick family names with good stories attached, and they're all classics. Being one of many can be a very good thing sometimes: it's a lot harder for annoying / scary people to find you on the net if you have a common name.
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I have a popular name for my age group and it never bothered me, but my name wasn't as popular as Jennifer. If my name was Jennifer, I would probably be a little disappointed.
With that said, I like to avoid popular names for my own personal satisfaction, but I doubt my kids would really care one way or another.
I also tend to base my decision on how popular a name "feels" to me or state/local stats more than the national (US) statistics. For example, Emma may be #1 and Ava may be #5, but Ava feels more popular to me. I checked the stats for my state and found out Ava was #1 for my state and several other bordering states. Zoe "feels" more popular to me than its 58 ranking suggests (and it is actually ranked lower in my state).
I used to be more stringent about my popularity requirements, going out of my way to avoid a name in the top 200. Now, I will only eliminate a name based on stats if it is in the top 25 or climbing drastically. For example, Adelaide may seem very rare with its 700 ranking, however 2-3 years ago Adelaide wasn't even in the top 1000 and I hear about it all the time on name sites. To me, Adelaide "feels" popular. Mary, on the other hand, is in the top 100 still, but falling and doesn't "feel" all that popular to me.
There are some exceptions. I just love Owen even though it "feels" popular to me. But the name gives me a warm fuzzy feeling and seems very wearable to me, plus it would make a good brother for Fiona. However, I didn't even consider it for my son expected in like 3 weeks (eek!) because I know my husband hates it and it may seem strange with my Italian last name.
With that said, I like to avoid popular names for my own personal satisfaction, but I doubt my kids would really care one way or another.
I also tend to base my decision on how popular a name "feels" to me or state/local stats more than the national (US) statistics. For example, Emma may be #1 and Ava may be #5, but Ava feels more popular to me. I checked the stats for my state and found out Ava was #1 for my state and several other bordering states. Zoe "feels" more popular to me than its 58 ranking suggests (and it is actually ranked lower in my state).
I used to be more stringent about my popularity requirements, going out of my way to avoid a name in the top 200. Now, I will only eliminate a name based on stats if it is in the top 25 or climbing drastically. For example, Adelaide may seem very rare with its 700 ranking, however 2-3 years ago Adelaide wasn't even in the top 1000 and I hear about it all the time on name sites. To me, Adelaide "feels" popular. Mary, on the other hand, is in the top 100 still, but falling and doesn't "feel" all that popular to me.
There are some exceptions. I just love Owen even though it "feels" popular to me. But the name gives me a warm fuzzy feeling and seems very wearable to me, plus it would make a good brother for Fiona. However, I didn't even consider it for my son expected in like 3 weeks (eek!) because I know my husband hates it and it may seem strange with my Italian last name.
This message was edited 2/22/2010, 5:05 AM
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I wouldn't like the have a child who had the same name as loads of other children. It wouldn't be too bad if I knew 1 or 2 people with the same name, but I was one of 4 in my class at school and it got pretty annoying!
Also, I would like my children to have interesting names - not too weird - just a bit different and special.
Also, I would like my children to have interesting names - not too weird - just a bit different and special.
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It matters to me because I had a popular name and didn't enjoy the experience growing up. Always getting confused with other people, learning to ignore it if someone calls your name isn't particularly fun. So I wouldn't want to inflict that to my kid, and would want him or her to have 4 classmates with the same first name. And if a name I like becomes too popular it generally becomes unappealing for me.
A slight pet peeve of mine is that when people say they don't care about popularity, they behave as if it is something that affects the parents ("I don't care if other people love the same name I do") while it chiefly affects the child and can be a hassle. And by a hassle I don't mean anyone's going to die or be traumatized or scarred, just well, it's going to be easier and nicer, IMHO, to have a name that, while not necessarily particularly rare, is somewhat distinct.
A slight pet peeve of mine is that when people say they don't care about popularity, they behave as if it is something that affects the parents ("I don't care if other people love the same name I do") while it chiefly affects the child and can be a hassle. And by a hassle I don't mean anyone's going to die or be traumatized or scarred, just well, it's going to be easier and nicer, IMHO, to have a name that, while not necessarily particularly rare, is somewhat distinct.
This message was edited 2/22/2010, 5:00 AM
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If I love a name enough, I would use it regardless of how popular it is. Generally though, a name being too popular turns me off just because I get so sick of hearing it all the time. Probably the only time that popularity would be a deciding factor is if my SO and I couldn't pick between a couple of names we both liked and one was significantly more popular than the other. In that case I'd imagine the less common name would win out.
ETA: Actually I do have to note the difference between trendy popular and classic popular names here. William for example is a name that will always be popular but when I imagine hypothetically naming a son of mine William, the fact he will probably be one of a couple of them in his class doesn't matter at all to me. On the other hand, if my absolute favourite boy's name Finn skyrocketed out of nowhere to become super popular and there was a good chance my Finn would be one of multiple in his class, that could be enough to dissuade me from using it. I don't think I'd want a name that would obviously 'date' my child to a particular time period.
ETA: Actually I do have to note the difference between trendy popular and classic popular names here. William for example is a name that will always be popular but when I imagine hypothetically naming a son of mine William, the fact he will probably be one of a couple of them in his class doesn't matter at all to me. On the other hand, if my absolute favourite boy's name Finn skyrocketed out of nowhere to become super popular and there was a good chance my Finn would be one of multiple in his class, that could be enough to dissuade me from using it. I don't think I'd want a name that would obviously 'date' my child to a particular time period.
This message was edited 2/22/2010, 3:50 AM
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I agree with this too!
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No influence for me ..
If I love a name, I will use it. I have loved Isabel for years. I had no idea it was so popular until I starting going on name sites. I still used it and I have no regrets.
I went by my last name a lot through out school and I'm not scarred in any way. It didn't bother me. :)
If I love a name, I will use it. I have loved Isabel for years. I had no idea it was so popular until I starting going on name sites. I still used it and I have no regrets.
I went by my last name a lot through out school and I'm not scarred in any way. It didn't bother me. :)
This message was edited 2/22/2010, 3:22 AM
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I named my daughter Beatrice after my late mother, knowing that it would be likely to get (somewhat) popular because of Prince Andrew's daughter. I thought that the family link outweighed other considerations ... and she'll have an answer if anyone ever imagines that she was named after the princess!
At one time when I was at school, our class of 30 contained 6 girls with names close to mine though not identical. Nobody died, and nobody was inconvenienced at all, even for a moment.
At one time when I was at school, our class of 30 contained 6 girls with names close to mine though not identical. Nobody died, and nobody was inconvenienced at all, even for a moment.
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Somewhat... but generally the names I like aren't really popular. Well known, yes, but not commonly used... except for possibly in literature. Like if I ever have kids they would be named Jane and Charles "Charlie".
Jane is very well known but is hardly used because of the fact that everyone knows it. And Charlie is used a lot in literature and people recognize it if they see it, but he will hardly be Charlie J. or whatever. ^_^
Jane is very well known but is hardly used because of the fact that everyone knows it. And Charlie is used a lot in literature and people recognize it if they see it, but he will hardly be Charlie J. or whatever. ^_^
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