Would you or have you chosen a popular baby name?

sidey1 · May 2015

DH and I are struggling with girl names, for me boy names were much easier! The name we thought we had settled on was Emma, and low and behold it was just announced as the most popular baby name in 2014!!! DH doesn't care but I have a popular name or at least it was in 1972, LOL, kind of wanted something slightly different. My mother has already started calling the baby Emma even though she knows we haven't finalized anything because she really likes it. DH has a last name that is easily made fun of so we can't go TOO unique, it will just sound ridiculous..

What do you think of really popular names? Any thoughts on using the same name as a friend named their child? I also really like Vivian, but a friend's daughter is named that, we're not super close anymore but I think I still feel a little weird about it. Funny side note, I was thinking of Emma and Mae as a middle name until I googled it, um hello porn star name, woops!

KaLikeAWind · May 2015

Me personally, I don't want to name my kid something where they are likely to have a bunch of other kids in their class with the same name. DH's name is super unique, so we know how sucky that is and don't want anything really abnormal, either. We've lucked out that both our boy names and girl names are not in the top 100. The boy name is trending upward (and more annoying, some people are using on girls more often now, but that's a whole other thing) but still hasn't broken that 100 mark. I'd like to have a better than average chance that when I shout my kids name at the park, half the kids don't all turn around. For the same reason, I'd be a little leery of using a name that a friend has used.
But, all that said above, and I'm firmly in the "if you love it, use it" camp. I just happen to be lucky that the names I love are not popular now

marijaa333 · May 2015

I had a fairly popular name growing up. I didn't mind at all. It was popular for a reason.

Hehe.

jerseygirl227 · May 2015

mellymar said:
But, all that said above, and I'm firmly in the "if you love it, use it" camp. I just happen to be lucky that the names I love are not popular now

I agree. If you love it, use it!

I don't think you can really predict how a name will go for a child anyway. My name is Wendy. When I was younger, I got asked about Peter Pan all the time. Then I got asked "Where's the Beef?" a lot when I was a little older, thanks to that whole Wendy's Hamburgers ad campaign. It was a ton of fun, especially during puberty, lol.

My sister's name is April, and people, to this day, still ask "Were you born in April?" She wasn't. She was born in May. "Then why isn't your name May?" people ask. It's really kind of stupid, if you ask me.

We are going with Chloe, even though I know it is in the top 20 popular names. Fiance and I had a difficult time picking a girl's name as well. The boy's name came much easier. I wasn't even sold on Chloe initially, but it was the first name we could agree on after lots of debate. It has grown on me though. Plus, her middle name is Evelyn, which I love and he didn't fight me on.

We were initially going to go with Chloe Anna (Anna after his mom who passed in the fall), but I thought Chloe Evelyn flowed better.

FWIW, I LOVE Emma. I think it is a beautiful name.

niknak1208 · May 2015

It really doesn't bother me. As long as I like it, then I stick with it. Emma was our choice too if we had a girl but it's a boy.

Our DD is Olivia and that's pretty popular too but we love it. DH's grandfather's name was Oliver so we felt like Olivia was kind of a tribute to him. DS's name is Collin and we haven't run into many Collin's in his school so far. Boys for us are always a lot harder. Collin was the ONLY name we could agree on. This time around I really wanted the name to be Carter. That was my fave boy name but DH hates it. So we're going with Samuel. Some people give us a hard time because we had a chocolate lab named Sammy that we had for 7 years and just put down a couple years ago. But I don't really care what people think. If we like it.. popular or not.. I stick with it.

browneyes_326 · May 2015

Well let's see ... At one time there were at least 6-7 others in my grade with my name ... As a teen & young adult I was besties with two different girls with the same name. Meeting boys went something like 'Hi what's your name?' ... Amy ... 'And what's your name?' ... Amy ... 'Oh YA right!'
So I always wished I had a 'unique name'. But as an adult I wouldn't change it.
Our DSs name I was totally set on & there are occasionally another in his class or at the playground but I loved it and never had a second thought.
My DD is whole other story! Girl names are so tough for me too but I was set on Lainy Grace ... Possibly Alaina Grace & call her Lainy .... But she has a cousin (which we've never met) named Dalainy who goes by Lainy.
SOOO in the end we went w/ DHs choice of Brooke Elizabeth and after slight regret in the first couple months, I can't imagine her name being anything else! Funny though how names have changed, on a regular basis people (over the phone) think I'm saying 'Brookes' and that she's a boy or that her name is Brooklyn b/c just Brooke is so not common right now.

Anyway! I have anguished over names and in the end I think they become the name they are given and you won't be able to imagine it any other way ... No matter how many other kids have that name

In the end go with your gut.
Let's us know what the verdict is!

honeybee530 · May 2015

Team green here and our girl name choice is not popular at all, however my top boy pick is in the top 3 I believe. DH isn't a fan so we haven't made a final choice yet. It's the only boy name I can say I love and should we have a boy and should DH come around (he says it's growing on him) it won't bother me at all that it's so popular.

LorMor · May 2015

My DH has a super common name, and wanted a super common name for our daughter. I have a super rare name, and wanted a super rare name for our daughter!

Oh wait, that doesn't answer your question.

Re the Vivian question - it's tricky, but don't forget you won't be around other Vivian all the time/much at all. So it might be a surprise to people who know both of you, but I'm pretty sure your circles don't overlap as much as you think they do. Pretty name.

sidey1 · May 2015

Thanks all, funny thing is DS is Nathaniel but we call him Nate, so totally not unique but we had that or Kellan picked out and decided to wait until he was born, we immediately knew he was a Nate and it fits him to a tee. There is another Nate his age in daycare and now that I think about it, it really doesn't bother me at all! After DS was born we met another couple with a DD that was name Kellan, lol.

I think will keep Emma but keep looking to find at least one other alternative that we like as much, but I do think Emma and Nate go really well together for Siblings!

mindaa · May 2015

LorMor said:
My DH has a super common name, and wanted a super common name for our daughter. I have a super rare name, and wanted a super rare name for our daughter!

Haha, this is totally me and DH! But that's because, while my name flowed well with maiden name, the married name is pretty cumbersome, so, having grown up with that, I totally understand why he wants to keep DS's name simple.

So, even though it makes me kinda sad, our pick is pretty popular. Which is probably why I'm having a hard time fully committing to it. That and the fact that it's increasingly being stolen as a girl name.

But, just about everything is now! (Like Kellan, what the heck!)

KateLouise · May 2015

DHs name is super common, so he was deadset against a common name. We've gone for names that aren't super common, but there's nothing unique or unusual about them (Elizabeth and Jane)

cneiding · May 2015

I like unique names and having grown up with one can appreciate that when someone says your name you KNOW they are talking to you! So I never consider the popular. However, I say that if you like it, use it. Sometimes what is listed as "popular" won't be popular in your particular area and your child will be the only one in school with that name in their class. Sometimes you could pick an unpopular name, a soap opera uses that name for a character a month later and every other kid will be given that name for the rest of the year!

Using a name someone else has I tend to feel the same way. I try to avoid it as I like unique...but...there are millions of people out there...someone is going to have the same name! If its not too unique of a name whereas no one has ever heard it, a friend of yours uses it and then suddenly you do...thats a little more akward seeing...but any other regular old name you should feel free to use.

KaLikeAWind · May 2015

mindaa said:

LorMor said:
My DH has a super common name, and wanted a super common name for our daughter. I have a super rare name, and wanted a super rare name for our daughter!

Haha, this is totally me and DH! But that's because, while my name flowed well with maiden name, the married name is pretty cumbersome, so, having grown up with that, I totally understand why he wants to keep DS's name simple.

So, even though it makes me kinda sad, our pick is pretty popular. Which is probably why I'm having a hard time fully committing to it. That and the fact that it's increasingly being stolen as a girl name. But, just about everything is now! (Like Kellan, what the heck!)

I'm also annoyed with my boy name being used as girls name. Actually, BOTH of my fav boy names are being used by some moms to name girls. The are still being used more often for boys, but the use for girls is climbing. So annoying!
:-w

cneiding · May 2015

mellymar said:

mindaa said:

I'm also annoyed with my boy name being used as girls name. Actually, BOTH of my fav boy names are being used by some moms to name girls. The are still being used more often for boys, but the use for girls is climbing. So annoying!
:-w

1/2 the time I suggest a boy name and DH is like, "thats a girl name" and ummm no its a boy name people are naming girls! I like girls ultra girly...save the boy names for boys!!

mindaa · May 2015

mellymar said:

mindaa said:

LorMor said:
My DH has a super common name, and wanted a super common name for our daughter. I have a super rare name, and wanted a super rare name for our daughter!

Haha, this is totally me and DH! But that's because, while my name flowed well with maiden name, the married name is pretty cumbersome, so, having grown up with that, I totally understand why he wants to keep DS's name simple.

So, even though it makes me kinda sad, our pick is pretty popular. Which is probably why I'm having a hard time fully committing to it. That and the fact that it's increasingly being stolen as a girl name. But, just about everything is now! (Like Kellan, what the heck!)

I'm also annoyed with my boy name being used as girls name. Actually, BOTH of my fav boy names are being used by some moms to name girls. The are still being used more often for boys, but the use for girls is climbing. So annoying!
:-w

If only you could look into the future and know - will the name stay relatively unisex like Taylor and Jordan, or will it go the way of Courtney and Lindsey, where you'd never know it had even been a male name until you meet that one poor guy... (I actually recently met a male Cassie. That was a new one!)

HWKI · May 2015

When my niece Emily was in t-ball it was hilarious to watch the coach shout out a direction and see the entire outfield look up. My daughter has a unique name we love it but it gets tedious spelling it and correcting people because it is one sound away from a very popular name. It was my great-grandmother's name, but people think it is a made up name which is also annoying. I think here are pros and cons to popular or unique names, so you just have to decide which things will be less annoying down the road.

groovylocks · May 2015

Our choices are classic and uncommon. So far we have Kira or Polly for our girl and Hugo or Ivan for our boy.

We kind of got to this place because they're the only names we even remotely agree on.

sdnyc99 · May 2015

With my daughter (now 17 yo) I wanted a name that wasn't very common but also wasn't "weird". Easy to pronounce and spell, but she wouldn't be one of 3 in her class.
I named her Miranda and 17 years later I'm still thrilled that it turned out exactly as I wanted.

This time we're expecting another girl and I again want something a little unique but DH likes really common names. I can't stand super common...but then again, I teach kindergarten, which could be why!

We're leaning toward Julia. Classic and well-known but not in the top 10 or anything.

frenchiemum · June 2015

I decided early on that I really liked the name Violet, but then found out its super popular... Which really turns me off. I'm finding I can't find a name which I don't associate with something or someone.. It's so hard! I'm between 36 and 37 weeks and I have nothing! lol I'm thinking of having a "name the baby" suggestion box at my baby shower tomorrow...

2cute04 · June 2015

We picked out our oldest daughters name Olivia before we knew how popular it was but we loved it. We gave her a classic middle name and then a nickname. I figure when she's old enough to decide she can choose from a bunch of options. Our second daughter, Melanie, is a bit more unique however, the kids love having their name on stuff. When it's unique you'll never find it out...it's a minor thing and obviously shouldn't sway your decision. Just thought I'd mention it. Good luck!

GalLaura · June 2015

My son has an old fashioned British/Aussie name that isn't heard much now. We like some very common names for girls and boys. I was thinking both should be more unique but in the end will go with what I like best!

dee24799 · June 2015

My first daughters name came to me in a dream and it now seems fitting for her that she is 12. So, Anjelika Starr it was. With my new one due in october 5th her name is Iliana Marie. iliana i always loved and Marie is her dads moms middle name (she passed a couple yrs back suddenly) so, both of my girls have not common names and i love it.

bublesmiled · June 2015

I also was given a popular name, so I understand your thoughts. I loved the name Lily long before I had my daughter, so when I found out I was pregnant with her over 6 years ago, the name was easy. Now that she is in school, I realize that it's quite a common name, where as it wasn't when I thought of it. Go with your gut, unfortunately if you choose another name, you won't know until after the fact that it could be popular. I've also known plenty of people that pick a few names and then decide when the baby is born what fits that child. Good luck, and hope you have an easy delivery!

nosoup4u · June 2015

Mae is a really pretty name in and of itself, IMO. And it's not v popular (I think). I personally don't consider any name that's currently in the top 100 popular names for the US. Luckily, there are tons of less popular names to chose from! Nymbler is good and Baby Name Wizard is fantastic for suggesting names that are similar to the type you like already.

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