Do you have a "popular" name

wandsandwine · April 2014

I know when I went to school there were a lot of Nicoles, Ashleys, Ryans, Johns... and so on. Our favorite name right now for our LO is Jack which is extremely popular from what I am hearing. We also love the names Ashton and Parker I don't hear as often. My question is if your name is popular did it bother you growing up with so many other people having your name?

Alaska_Bride · April 2014

I have a very unpopular name and I still had another little girl with the same name in 3rd grade. Jack is a great name! It would have been a contender for us if we didn't already have a Jack in the family.

kiley820 · April 2014

My name isn't super popular but I did have a few other girls in my grade with the same name. It didn't bother me at all. It was more annoying when people would spell my name wrong all the time (it doesn't have any strange spelling, either!)

I personally love the name Jack! I say name your child whatever you like, popular or not. The way I see it, is even if it's not popular right now, it may be popular again a couple years from now. And vice versa. As long as you love it and feel like it's a good, strong name that fits your child- that's all that matters

shevaCC · April 2014

Another thing to keep in mind is that there's no way to guarantee what names your son's future classmates will have, but that in general the most popular names of today are much less prevalent than the popular names of the 80s and 90s. I would say go with what you love.

mikescutie7 · April 2014

My name was popular but few go by the nickname I use so it never bothered me. My husband has an extremely common name for boys, then and now, and he hates it for that reason.

Nuclearcupcake · April 2014

My name was popular growing up. I liked the rare moment where I was the only one in my class but I survived and I don't hate it.

loulou182 · April 2014

My name is very unique, and I don't know anyone else with it. My mom said she made it up. It was awful growing up with my name because I was teased so much about it. Now I really hate my name.

spacedolphin11 · April 2014

I have a fairly unique but non-made-up name with a unique spelling, and I'll admit the spelling has been a bit frustrating over the years but I still love my name.

DH has an extremely popular name (it's pretty much always in the top 10) but he says it didn't bother him sharing his name and he just went by a nickname. The real issue is that his (and now our) last name is also extremely popular so there are thousands of people with the exact same name as him, which can get confusing (and it's hard to get a good email address, for example.)

For our own kids we've decided to split the difference - no made-up spellings and no names in the Top 10. If we had a less common last name though I wouldn't worry about it! If you love a name, go for it!

ungraceful13 · April 2014

Mine wasnt at all. To this day I have only ever met 3 people with that name. DH however has a very popular name so much to the point that there are people with his same full name where we live and it becomes confusing. We decided not to use super popular names to avoid this and also bc I work in education and therefore popular names are always associated with other kids. However if you guys like a name, use it.

tamarar5 · April 2014

My name isn't popular at all. And yet, there is another woman in my ob practice with the same first and last name. So even if you pick an unusual name, there's no telling what may happen.

I had to deal with people mispronouncing my name all of my life and I grew to HATE my name. What I wouldn't have given as a kid to be another Kristen or Allison. I didn't start to like my given name until I met my husband and he loved it.

chase16 · April 2014

Yes

my first name is Sarah. I have been sarah lastname, or lastname my whole life. Very few people call me sarah. Especially since now I'm in the army. I really hear my first name all of once a month or so. I didn't like it growing up, and having a classic but unpopular name for my kid was one of the things I kept in mind when choosing a name for baby girl

BeachM · April 2014

My name is popular in the sense that it is very traditional and you can always find it on keychains and such: Elizabeth. That being said, it seemed like in the 80s and 90s it was always everyone's middle name but not first name. I loved it, lots of nickname options, traditional but not overly popular.

I like to look up name trends on the SSA website. You can search by where you live and that gives you an idea of what's popular locally.

https://www.ssa.gov/OACT/babynames/state/index.html

GreenMonkey1 · April 2014

I have a popular name and there were at least three of us in the same grade growing up, never bothered me. My good friend and I share the same name, in high school if we worked on a project together we would just write our shared first name, no last names on the paper. Guess we thought we were saving graphite! In my previous job there were four of us with the same first name, only a problem if people called and did not specify which specific individual they wanted. So I would have to route phone calls occasionally to the correct person, nbd. I would say go with what you love.

haliebabyx3 · April 2014

I have a popular name, just not a popular way of spelling it. It really didn't bother me so much growing up that others had it, it bothered me more as a kid when I could never find anything with my name spelled the way it was. You would always see the key chains with Hailey and Haley, but never Halie.

I like Jack, I know where I live I only know one Jack and I haven't seen him in years, besides that I don't know anyone named Jack.

aelhunt · April 2014

I went to a small school and there were still lots of girls with my name. Amanda. It didn't bother me much though. DD has a name that is unique but traditional and DS will have a very popular name. We love the name and we agree on it so we are sticking with it.

rockyrollgirl · April 2014

It was popular at the time (Nicole), but not so much anymore. It is more common now for it to be used as a middle name and I can't say I have heard anyone naming their daughters that now.

It did not bother me at all.

Tinkerbell084 · April 2014

Parker is our first choice, DH wants Parker for Boy or Girl (I love the name for a boy, but I'm wavering on if I think it's an okay girl name). DH likes gender neutral/trendier girl names, while I prefer older/traditional - which many seem to becoming popular. If we go with Parker for a girl, I plan to pick a traditional middle name in case she would prefer to use that. I LOVE the name Jack and think it would go great with our last name, but DH is not a fan. I'm not a fan of unusual spellings, especially for common names. DH's ex chose an odd spelling for SS's name, I find it very annoying to have to constantly correct.

IvyMagic828 · April 2014

We're having a boy, and have yet to seriously discuss names. We both like Jack, but it's my dad's nickname, and I'd feel weird about using it.. we don't really want to name our kids after our family members and it might get confusing to have two Jacks around. Too bad, because I think I'm going to have the hardest time finding a boy name I like! (and then I have to get H to agree to it, haha) I don't know, maybe we'll change our minds if we can't find another name we really like. It does seem to be more popular these days, but I wouldn't let that bother me if I really liked the name.

Good luck with your decision!

DanRae801 · April 2014

My name is Danielle. I would'nt say it is the most common but in second grade another Danielle moved to our school and we became best friends. It was a tough trasition going from the only Danielle in my class to being Danielle W but it wasn't a real bother. One year the kids in our class decided that they weren't going to call us Danielle W and Danielle C anymore but DW and DC. Again that wasn't much of a problem but that was when the show Arthur was popular and they liked to pick on me a little saying I was Arthur's sister (her name was DW) which in elementary school that was an insult but nothing major. In Middle School and High School I always had 4-5 other Danielle's in my grade but we rarely had class together.

NSAbby · April 2014

My name is Abigail. (hence my username NSAbby-not shabby Abby. Not NSA baby).

I've met others with my name, and its a traditional name, but I've never been around more than one other Abby at a time, I don't think.

ashleylucke · April 2014

My name is Ashley and I went to a really big school. I had about 6 in my class. I can't say I "hated" my name but felt like someone was always calling my name. Maybe a unique spelling can make it feel special. I always wondered if I wold like my name more if it were spelled Ashleigh or some other creative way. But just remember its your child so do what you feel you should. Good Luck

andatcdc · April 2014

My name is Ashley Nicole .. can you get a more popular name growing up in the 80's-90's? There was ALWAYS another Ashley no matter where I went .. I always ended up being Ashley D. I could never go by just Ashley. I like my name but don't love my name because I have always wanted to be "different" When I got to high school there were so many Ashley's that I finally got a nickname ... well considering my last name started with "Dick" that made a great nickname!! :-) Anyway, I am choosing a more unique name for LO for this exact reason.

With all that being said I really like the name Jack but most of the Jack's I know are actually Jackson.

sarahg8r · April 2014

My name is Sarah and it never bothered me that it was popular. In fact, I think it's preferable to having a name that always has to be explained, spelled or repeated. I think Jack is a great name for a boy...go for it!

acorn99 · April 2014

I have a name that has always been in the top name list, but I never really knew too many others with the same name.

We plan to name this little guy a very common name, after H's grandfather. I could care less if there are ten other boys with the same name when he gets to school, because his name has such an important meaning to us.

caballablanca · April 2014

My name was really popular back in the 50's and 60's when my parents were in school. I only knew one other Linda when I was in school. I liked having keychains with my name on it.

rstarrlemaitre · April 2014

Not me, but I attended an all-girls small junior high, where in a class of 28 there were 5 Katherine's and 4 Elizabeth's (so nearly a third of the class). Oddly, it worked out that almost all used different nicknames - there were 2 Kates, a Katie, a Cat, and a Katherine. The Elizabeths had 1 Beth, 1 Liz, 1 Eliza, and 1 Elizabeth. So... i guess it works out, but keep nicknames in mind!

Laur110 · April 2014

I just wanted to chime in and say that I love the name Jack. That was our choice if we were having a boy!

Jenrileysmom · April 2014

My name is Jennifer. I was born in 1980 when it was #1 in popularity. It was also #1 for a few years prior to that. I graduated with 11 other Jennifers. I have always hated my name.

I like the name Jack though

TessTickle · April 2014

toratoratori said:

I don't have a super common name (Victoria), and my nickname (Tori) is less common than others (Vicki / Vicky). I never had anyone in my classes growing up with the same name, but I hate when I meet other Toris now. I don't know why. Maybe because I was the only one for such a long time that it feels weird to not be the only one? Like someone is stealing my name? I have issues.

I will say that I had a ton of friends named Lauren when I was going to school, and it was a pain in the ass trying to keep them all straight. I don't know if it bothered them, though. I'm just fussy, obviously.

As one of the 8 Laurens IN MY HOMEROOM ALONE... yeah, I despised my name (and still do). I've always gone by my last name, which I love.

I think it's funny that name popularity greatly varies by location. I now live down south, and my husband (my age) has only ever met 3 Laurens besides me - 2 of which were boys (spelled "Loren."). Also, down south people tend to say my name as LOR-en versus LAW-ren, which sounds a lot prettier IMO.

That being said, my daughter will not have a popular name.

shaylagirl · April 2014

My son's name (Austin) is popular. I suspect because of where we live; yep, in the Texas hill country.

In my defense, it was NOT the name -I- wanted to name him originally, but was the ONLY name his father and I could agree on. Should have stuck to my guns. Father's not in the picture, but I've got the kiddo. Should have just changed his name. LOL!!

FrodaBaggins · April 2014

yes!! I was born in the early 80s. There were more Jennifers than anything else in my class, but lots of Lauras as well with a whole variety of spelling, and lots of Stephanies/Ashleighs. But mine was still up there. I was known as "first name last initial" because of it for most of grade school but really didn't care. It honestly made no difference to me and I didn't feel less unique or special because of it.

We chose a first name for our boy (Wyatt) that is becoming increasingly more popular, but my husband has had his heart set on it for 19 years! (that's how long ago he watched the movie "Tombstone" and it has long since been his favorite. We must watch that dang movie like 10 times per year and he has the whole thing memorized.) My nephew is named Charlie which is also really popular - but it doesn't matter to me or my SIL.

borstad · April 2014

There were 5 other girls in my class with the same name but it didn't bother me.

Jennicillin · April 2014

I think common is good so you can get personalized stuff...

I was a Jennifer in the 80's so all that personalized stuff was sold out. And I also hated always being Jennifer 1 or Jennifer B or having to argue with other Jennifers in my class as to who would go by Jenn or Jenny or Jennifer.

I was one of at least 3 Jennifers in every class in elementary school, it was less of a problem as I got older and was in larger groups of my peers. But it's something I still run into a lot. I even had a guy ask my name once and then when I told him say "Oh, you must have been born in the early 80's then" Ugh......

So yeah, I still don't really like that I had a hugely popular name, and am refusing to give my kids anything on a "top 10" list. But I'm all for common or "normal" names that people will know how to pronounce and spell, and I can get them on a keychain at Disneyland...

Allison7 · April 2014

When I was born in 1978 Allison was not even in the top 40. It isn't an uncommon name, but it also wasn't Jennifer, Jessica, Heather, or Amanda. There were soooooo many Jennifers in my graduating class.

Despite not being a top 10 name, there was an Alison and an Allyson in my class. I actually became best friends (still am) with the Allyson. By high school we just decided to go by our last names for nicknames. That still sticks. We still call each other by our last names (we also have nicknames for our last names) and most of our friends from high school still call us by our last names. It never bothered us that we both had the same first name - we actually kind of liked it.

I do know that Allyson hated that she could never find keychains and stuff with her spelling. There wasn't always Allison available, but when it was it was always spelled my way. Watching that happen made me kind of against unique spellings.

Ultimately, if you like Jack it will be fine. All that really matters is that you like it

HeatherHam10 · April 2014

Mine was somewhat popular but my friend Amanda said it was annoying being one of a few in every class. Im a 2nd grade teacher and am hearing lots of Ashtons and Parkers.

tealowl · April 2014

It didn't really bother me being one of many Sarah's (one of my best friends growing up was also a Sarah), but I did always wish I would have had a less common name. My middle and last name is also super common.

It might be why I'm drawn to people with unusual names, I've always had close friends with super unique names.

And I'm picky about baby names, I don't want anything classic/trendy/common in our area. DD is Chloe, but she was born in 2001, so we've only heard or met 2 others her age with that name, however it seemed to get more popular for kids younger than her. I still don't hear it much around here though.

Lovemylittles · April 2014

My name was fairly popular growing up,I always had to be Kelly S. It didn't necessarily annoy me but I guess it bothered me enough that we tried to make sure all our kids names weren't in the top 50.

BlckRoses · April 2014

lindalkelso said:

My name was really popular back in the 50's and 60's when my parents were in school. I only knew one other Linda when I was in school. I liked having keychains with my name on it.

STUCK IN BOX

My name is Sandy, which was super popular in the 50s, so I have the name of an old lady. I've only met a couple of other Sandy's my age (one was a close friend in elementary school). I hated having an old lady name, and all the keychains said Sandra. But I was usually the only one.

Jennyfahh · April 2014

My husband and I both have super popular names along with very common last names (both my maiden and married names are common). I didn't really care growing up, especially in high school when fitting in is all the rage, and I actually really like it now in this internet world where it's super easy to search for people. Not me! Type in my name and 928347239847 of us will come up

beachbum4304 · April 2014

I'm Katie and it was popular, I didn't care. Oh well. I know a lot of people don't like it but I know plenty of people with more unique names that didn't like it. I personally love Jack.