One of our top 2 choices, Ella, is popular. In 2013, it was 15 nationwide, but in my state it was 28 (who knows what it will be for 2014). I don't know how I feel about popularity. My DH doesn't care. I know popularity means something different now than it used to. It's the main thing holding me back from the name. Help!
Re: How much does popularity matter to you?
Fast forward to today, and both my boys have popular names. But our last name is a mess, and DH got teased ALL the time. I am hoping they will appreciate an easy first name since they are stuck with a not-so-fun first name the rest of their lives.
With DS I found that popularity did weigh into my choice. When I chose his name (Luca) it wasn't popular. (#272) But within a year of his birth it was! Now we have met a few Lucas around his age. (It's still only ranked at 202, and I have no idea where it stands in our state, but I hear it more often lately.)
So this go around I'm weighing popularity BIG TIME. Our #1 choice and name we love the most is Eliana. But it is sooooo popular here. I think I know 3 or 4 Elianas under the age of 3. It's ranked 125 in the nation, but not in the top 100 in our state. The other name DH really likes is Gianna. Again, I feel like it's uber-popular. (86 in the US, 71 in our state.) Same goes for Michaela. There are a gazillion different spellings of it and so when you put them all together I feel like it's a really popular name. It's making it REALLY hard for me to pick a name because these ones that I would love otherwise are being "clouded" by how popular they are.
In short, it really depends on the person. It's really hard, though. I wish I could go back to loving Eliana as much as I did for the longest time.
J -- 9/04
L -- 11/10
E -- 7/15
Asher is now my front runner but after seeing that it's one of the "up and coming names of 2015" I'm a little drawn back.
I don't want my kid to have to go by Asher D. because he is the 3rd kid in his class with that name.
I've always thought Ella was a pretty name. Maybe if her middle name was a little more uncommon it might help?
Popular names are often popular because they are good, solid names though.
If you love the name Ella, then just go for it.
My name wasn't top 100 for when I was born, yet I have 2 friends with the same name. Impossible to predict future classmates or coworkers' names.
I was a Staci born in the 80s. The only thing it had going was the unusual spelling. There was actually another Stacy, Stacey, etc. with my last name just a year ahead of me in school. No fun.
I try to avoid popular names and was disappointed to see one of my top choices is ranked #44 in my state. I love it enough that I can probably overlook that but if it were higher up the list I would reconsider.
Our hypothetical DS1 will be Sebastian. I have met 1 Sebastian from another state who belongs to a very different culture from mine and who I will never meet again. Sebastian has never been in the list of names in above mentioned magazine, tho I'm sure it will be, it's so far unheard of in my social circles. Also it doesn't bother me at all that Sebastian is what a lobster? I can't remember what from some Disney movie, because neither I, nor any of my friends, nor my son have or are likely to ever watch the movie.
Isabella is one the top names on our girl list. I have never met one, but have heard of one little girl outside of our social circles. Isabel was listed once in about the last 5yrs worth of our magazine, but no Isabella. I don't think there were any before that. I don't remember any but I didn't go and check. I know it's way high on the ss lists but it's not in my circles.
Just two examples of how much and what kind of popularity matters too me.
ETA: yikes I know this is insanely long already but I decided to add one more example
Aria/Arya (I forget which is supposed to be correct) -I listened to the first GOT book and liked the name in there. (Maybe because i "empathized" with her, because I was a tomboy growing up and basically wished I'd been burn a guy.) But I think there is/going to be a LOT of "Arias named after GOT" on the 2010s" I'm not sure I want that association for my daughter. While I found the book Game of Thrones very interesting and very well written, I was sick of the immorality by the end. I know that's why it's so popular and no offence at all to those who love it, I just don't want to fill my mind with that. But most of the people who hear my daughter's name and associate with her have no idea what GOT is. And what I know of her character I liked