Patches of Names

Late in 2019, I listed a few trends among girls' and boys' names, each with several candidates. Here are the girls' names that made it so far: Jade (#105 in 2019, entered 2020, #84 in 2024) Leilani (#107 in 2019, entered 2020, #66 in 2024) Athena (#104 in 2019, entered 2021, #90 in 2024) Eloise  (#149 in 2019, entered 2022, #64 in 2024) Iris (#128 in 2019, entered 2022, #71 in 2024) Eden (#145 in 2019, entered 2023, #72 in 2024) Ayla (#163 in 2019, entered 2022 and 2024 at #69) Daisy (#164 in 2019, entered 2024 at #76) Melody (#118 in 2019, entered 2024 at #91) In November 2022, I updated my predictions, one of which, Maeve , made the top 100 in 2023.  Here are the predicted boys' names that made the top 100 so far: Brooks (#109 in 2019, entered 2020, #67 in 2024) Silas (#105 in 2019, entered 2020, #81 in 2024) Bennett (#108 in 2019, entered 2021, #60 in 2024) Rowan (#118 in 2019, entered 2022, #71 in 2024) Theo (#195 in 2019, entered 2022, #80 in 2024) Walker (#230 in ...

Now that I reviewed the new top 100 girls' names, it's time to move on to the boys. I predicted four names would leave the top 100, but the actual number is three, all expected dropouts: Easton fell from #96 to #103. He has waned in favor of Weston, another direction-inspired surname-name.  Jordan dropped from #98 to #104. It's about time, since he conjures the image of a grown young man.  Landon fell from #97 to #106. He sounds less tired than Jordan, but surnames ending in "-dan" (including but not limited to the "-ayden" names) are falling out of favor.  Replacing these are three new entries, only two of which I expected. Here they are: August , having jumped from #104 to #88, has finally made his return to the top 100. He also fits in among tailored names like Bennett and Wesley. Myles jumped from #106 to #99. He is merely a respelling of Miles. Yet, if Luka rose after Luca, Myles makes sense. Adam returned to the top 100 after a year out, rising fro...

The new name data came out yesterday. Now it's time to for the results, and how my predictions live up to them.  As I predicted, six girls' names left the top 100, half of which I did not expect: Cora  dropped from #93 to #102. I did not expect her to leave despite her decline in 2023 because she is a vintage revival who has only become popular in 2015. Maybe the "cor" sound is scaring parents away once again (because of "coronavirus").   Ariana declined from #96 to #103 after over two decades of popularity. She has now been replaced by Eliana and Liliana.  Natalia declined from #95 to #105. She returned to the top 100 in 2020 after two single-year runs in 2006 and 2010, but that run turned out to be brief as well. There is not much drawing modern parents towards Natalia other than as a Natalie alternative, anyway. Gabriella  fell from #89 to #106. I also did not expect her to leave this year because she fell less than 10 spots in popularity in 2023. Gabrie...

As I mentioned in my last post, the new name data comes out this Friday. Now that I predicted the new top 100 girls' names, I move on to the boys' names. I think four names will leave the boys' top 100: Easton became a top 100 staple in 2012 and is back where he was at his debut (#96). Since he dropped 16 spots in 2023, he can easily slip out in 2024. With Ethan also on the decline, Easton is losing his zeal.  Jaxon has been a top 100 choice since 2010, his popularity probably being boosted as a creative respelling of Jackson. Having dropped 19 spots to #86 in 2023, falling as few as 15 spots can get him out of the top 100. Jackson is declining, too.  Jordan has been a top 100 staple since 1982. In 2023, he has fallen six spots to #98. After over 40 years as a chart-topper, Jordan is on his way out. Landon has been a top 100 name since 2003 and, in 2023, has fallen 10 spots to the same rank he was at his debut (#97). Landon, alongside Jordan, feels slightly dated, so it...

With the new name data from the Social Security Administration coming out this Friday, it is time to make predictions once again. This year, I think six girls' names will leave the top 100: Aaliyah has been a top 100 hit since 2001 and is at her lowest point since 2007. She dropped 17 spots from #69 to #86 in 2023; dropping the same amount will retire her. As with Neveah, she has the markings of a "fad" name via her creative spelling and high top 1000 debut (in the 200s). If Nevaeh has gone, so will Aaliyah. Allison , previously ranking in the top 100 between 1974 and 2021, returned for one more year. She may be a modern classic spanning multiple generations, but there are fresher choices out there. Ariana has been a top 100 favorite since 2001 and is at her lowest point since then. Spelling variant Arianna has come and gone since then. She dropped six spots in 2023 to #96; dropping six more spots will get her out. Ariana sounds slightly dated, so it's about time.  Ha...