Phoenix84
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Post by Phoenix84 on Nov 29, 2012 18:49:05 GMT -5
Something I've wondered for a while. If you have kids, (or if you did have hypothetical kids) how do you decide what to name them? here's an article talking about the most popular baby names for 2012. living.msn.com/family-parenting/when-aidan-met-sophia-1Apparantly the top names are Boys Girls 1. Aiden Emma 2. Jackson Olivia 3. Ethan Isabella 4. Liam Sophia 5. Mason Mia 6. Noah Ava 7.Lucas Lily 8.Jacob Zoe 9.Jayden Chloe 10.Jack Madison When/if I have kids. First and foremost I want something that's professional and can work in the workplace. So really cutsie names would be out. Something short would be preferable, since I have a long last name. I would also try and find a balance of not naming my kid something too common (like a name on the list above) but at the same time not something strange or weird, so they won't get made fun of for their name? What critera do you look for?
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Abby Normal
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Post by Abby Normal on Nov 29, 2012 18:51:16 GMT -5
We had to go with the name that didn't sound phallic. There were too many that would have condemed DS for life in combination with our last name.
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Phoenix84
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Post by Phoenix84 on Nov 29, 2012 18:53:13 GMT -5
Out of all those most popular names, I can't say I know anyone with a name. I don't think I've even met an Aiden ever. I guess we'll have a lot of them in the world in 20 or so years.
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kittensaver
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Post by kittensaver on Nov 29, 2012 18:55:20 GMT -5
Coming from a not-so-distant-immigrant family (I'm second generation), we do it the old-fashioned way: family names. Names of saints. Often the same thing.
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chiver78
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Post by chiver78 on Nov 29, 2012 18:59:34 GMT -5
I have a bunch of HS and college friends who have had multiple Aidans (with widely varying spellings), Liams, Avas, and Masons over the past few years - all under the age of 10. I'm kind of bummed, actually, because Aidan had long been my first pick for a boy's name. by the time I get around to having kids - IF I ever get around to it - I'm sure not using that name now. I'd always figured I'd use family names for any girls. both my grandmothers have names that used to be considered "old" but have been making comebacks lately. not #1, but still in the top 100.
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steph08
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Post by steph08 on Nov 29, 2012 19:01:28 GMT -5
Out of all those most popular names, I can't say I know anyone with a name. I don't think I've even met an Aiden ever. I guess we'll have a lot of them in the world in 20 or so years. Well, ya that's kind of the point since it is the top baby names of 2012. Look up the year you were born - all of the names will be familiar. I can name more than one person with all of the names. From the year I was born: Male Female Michael Jessica Christopher Ashley Matthew Jennifer Joshua Amanda Daniel Sarah David Stephanie James Nicole Robert Heather John Elizabeth Joseph Megan
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weltschmerz
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Post by weltschmerz on Nov 29, 2012 19:02:08 GMT -5
I'm Russian, so it had to be a Russian name to please my parents. My husband was Jewish, so it had to be a Jewish name to please his parents. I live in a French milieu and was going to send my child to a English school, so it had to work in both French and English. So, after much head-scratching.....Simon it was! It helps that I really love the name.
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kittensaver
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Post by kittensaver on Nov 29, 2012 19:04:21 GMT -5
Welts - I love the name Simon! I gave it to one of my treasured kitties (no offense to your human Simon!). I still miss that cat . . .
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weltschmerz
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Post by weltschmerz on Nov 29, 2012 19:09:00 GMT -5
Welts - I love the name Simon! I gave it to one of my treasured kitties (no offense to your human Simon!). I still miss that cat . . . No offense taken. There are scads of Simons in the UK, but here....not so much. He's the only Simon I know.
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weltschmerz
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Post by weltschmerz on Nov 29, 2012 19:11:14 GMT -5
SI-mon in English Si-MON in French SHI-mon in Hebrew Sim-YON in Russian.
Worked beautifully.
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chiver78
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Post by chiver78 on Nov 29, 2012 19:14:23 GMT -5
SI-mon in English Si-MON in French SHI-mon in Hebrew Sim-YON in Russian. Worked beautifully. sounds like one of my names - Eva EE-va in American English Eh-vah in Acadian French Ay-va in Italian <- this Nana was 100% Italian
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Nazgul Girl
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Post by Nazgul Girl on Nov 29, 2012 19:14:42 GMT -5
I know eight children with names on that list, including Madison next door, and my own nephew Jacob, who's now an adult. I don't think they're that weird or uncommon. Well, maybe a couple are unusual, but most are going to be pretty standard for the next 20 years. I'm waiting for when Darlene, Suzanne, Susan, Ellen, and Mark, Mike, James, Tom, and Dennis come back. All of these names seem to recycle every seventy years or so, except for the present-day fad of giving children surnames as their first names. The little girl next door is named Madison, but she answers to Maddie. That wouldn't be my favorite nickname if people were calling me that. My favorite "new" child's name was a baby named McKenna Rose.
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Phoenix84
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Post by Phoenix84 on Nov 29, 2012 19:20:46 GMT -5
"I'd always figured I'd use family names for any girls. both my grandmothers have names that used to be considered "old" but have been making comebacks lately. not #1, but still in the top 100."
Like Margery, Deloris, or Ethel?
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Phoenix84
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Post by Phoenix84 on Nov 29, 2012 19:21:35 GMT -5
I know what you mean Steph, I know a crap ton of Jennifer's and Matt's and Chris's and Sarah's.
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weltschmerz
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Post by weltschmerz on Nov 29, 2012 19:23:31 GMT -5
"I'd always figured I'd use family names for any girls. both my grandmothers have names that used to be considered "old" but have been making comebacks lately. not #1, but still in the top 100." Like Margery, Deloris, or Ethel? Myrtle. You don't see that any more.
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midjd
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Post by midjd on Nov 29, 2012 19:24:48 GMT -5
Same here. Add in Brady, Wyatt, and Noah - a lot of them, too. We must be about the same age. Both my name and my brother's are on there Oddly there was only ever 1 other person with my name in my grade - and that wasn't until high school. But my poor brother had to be known by his first name + last initial all through school, he was one of a half-dozen. (And I named him, so my track record is already shot!) I'd go for something in the top 100 but not the top 10, not too long, not too hard to spell/pronounce (our last name is an atypical spelling).
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chiver78
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Post by chiver78 on Nov 29, 2012 19:25:11 GMT -5
"I'd always figured I'd use family names for any girls. both my grandmothers have names that used to be considered "old" but have been making comebacks lately. not #1, but still in the top 100." Like Margery, Deloris, or Ethel? haha, no - Eva and Cecile (I changed my mind about sharing the names here) that said, the couple HS classes behind my own had quite a few old names. there was a Dorothy, Ester, and a Martha. there were more, but those are the only ones coming to mind right now.
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weltschmerz
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Post by weltschmerz on Nov 29, 2012 19:25:11 GMT -5
I like Eva. It would be YE-va in Russian. Can't say I'm too crazy about the unisex names. Madison. Hunter. Taylor. Parker.
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Phoenix84
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Post by Phoenix84 on Nov 29, 2012 19:27:35 GMT -5
Most of those names aren't what I'd call weird.
Aiden isn't a bad name, but strange in the sense I've never met one so it's still uncommon, at least to me.
I'm not sure I'd name a kid Jackson, Jack is better.
I think short names would work. My Dad's name is John, so something like James or Jack would work well with my last name.
My coulsin named her kid Josephine, my other named their kid Harper, I'm not that big of a fan of either name.
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Mardi Gras Audrey
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Post by Mardi Gras Audrey on Nov 29, 2012 19:51:17 GMT -5
You could always do what the Mom and Dad did in the book "Ten kids, No pets". They got a baby name book and named the each child the name that corresponded with the number they were in alphabetical order. They had an Abigail (First child, first name in girl's side of book), Bainbridge (Second child, second name in boy's side of book), Calandra (Third child, third name in girl's side of book), and so on. They ended up with Abigail, Bainbridge, Calandra, Dagwood, Eberhard, Faustine, Gardenia, Hannah, Ira, and Jan...
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midjd
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Post by midjd on Nov 29, 2012 19:52:08 GMT -5
OMG Audrey, I LOVED that book!
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Cookies Galore
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Post by Cookies Galore on Nov 29, 2012 19:52:41 GMT -5
1. Aiden Emma 2. Jackson Olivia 3. Ethan Isabella 4. Liam Sophia 5. Mason Mia 6. Noah Ava 7.Lucas Lily 8.Jacob Zoe 9.Jayden Chloe 10.Jack Madison I'm in my 30s and I know 9 people with these names ranging in age from 9-37. I don't find them to be weird or different.
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Cookies Galore
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Post by Cookies Galore on Nov 29, 2012 19:54:42 GMT -5
Popular in 1981: 1 Michael Jennifer 2 Christopher Jessica 3 Matthew Amanda 4 Jason Sarah 5 David Melissa 6 Joshua Amy 7 James Nicole 8 John Stephanie 9 Robert Elizabeth 10 Daniel Heather
What's wrong with Meghan?!
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quince
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Post by quince on Nov 29, 2012 19:56:25 GMT -5
Husband has picked some odd first names, so I'm picking middle names that can shorten into whatever nickname the hypothetical offspring want, if they choose not to use their firsts. We realized one name that we picked has, with our hyphenated last names, the initials JAMN (Jamming). ZUMN (Zooming) was another name...DENM (Denim). I suggested a series of names that had the initials DAMN...we haven't decided yet but I've informed my husband that we're both horrible people.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 29, 2012 19:59:01 GMT -5
One year I had four Ashleys and three Matthews and two sets or something else (that I have forgotten).
I asked the class, "Was there a shortage of names the year you were born?" It was really annoying. I actually had to do "Ashley G" and "Ashley R" to differentiate them.
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steph08
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Post by steph08 on Nov 29, 2012 20:00:03 GMT -5
Mid - too funny. Both my first and middle name are on there. And your brother - LOL! We actually had two kids named Brandon Smith in my grade. So one was always Brandon L. Smith and one was Brandon J. Smith!
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busymom
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Post by busymom on Nov 29, 2012 20:06:41 GMT -5
DH & I didn't choose names for our kids based on "most popular" lists. We just picked names we liked, that were easy to spell. (Our last name is difficult to spell, so we wanted to at least make the first name easy.)
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chiver78
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Post by chiver78 on Nov 29, 2012 20:09:05 GMT -5
One year I had four Ashleys and three Matthews and two sets or something else (that I have forgotten). I asked the class, "Was there a shortage of names the year you were born?" It was really annoying. I actually had to do "Ashley G" and "Ashley R" to differentiate them. my college major's graduating class (of 45, mostly guys) had three Kristans, as the crew was collectively known - each of the three spelled it differently, none had an A. and no, none of the variations made the top 10 for 1978.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 29, 2012 20:13:06 GMT -5
I stuck with biblical names, not so much because I'm religious, I just wanted ones that had been around forever. The middle names were also biblical and the names of their grandfathers.
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Malarky
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Post by Malarky on Nov 29, 2012 20:39:03 GMT -5
DS is named after his grandfather and DH has a fairly common name, number 9 the year he was born. But DH's name was number 2 the year DS was born. So we end up with people confusing the two. Because of their ages and "popular" names. When I say DS's name they assume I'm talking about his father, because of the name. Then came DD. Her name is 52 for the year she was born. But, from the moment I realized that I was pregnant with her, I knew that the girl name we had picked while planning to have another baby was not actually her name. Sorry, Meghan. She's owned her name since she was three weeks in the womb. She's my Erin girl. My feisty, redheaded Irish girl. Named after the whole damn country.
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