Patches of Names

Here are the top 100 girls' names starting with "B" as of the 2024 data: Brooklyn (#108) Bella (#109) Brielle (#144) Blakely (#158) Brianna (#181) Bailey (#182) Blake (#210) Blair (#218) Brynlee (#229) Brooke (#308) Briella (#373) Brynn (#384) Bonnie (#441) Blaire (#446) Bianca (#460) Brooklynn (#468) Briar (#522) Briana (#537) Brinley (#564) Beatrice (#579) Bristol (#635) Belen (#669) Billie (#694) Bridget (#703) Bethany (#727) Birdie (#754) Brittany (#791) Brynleigh (#804) Baylor (#807) Braelynn (#810) Barbara (#860) Bellamy (#861) Berkley (#879) Bailee (#989) Belle (#1005) Betty (#1008) Bria (#1009) Brylee (#1014) Baylee (#1016) Beverly (#1046) Bennett (#1060) Braelyn (#1076) Blessing (#1112) Bexley (#1125) Brenda (#1139) Braylee (#1175) Bernadette (#1247) Brynley (#1272) Blessyn (#1327) Britney (#1333) Beatrix (#1379) Baila (#1427) Blakelynn (#1469) Brynnlee (#1538) Blakeleigh (#1594) Bentley (#1702) Bryleigh (#1703) Belinda (#1726) Beatriz (#1738) Bryanna (#1739) Br...

When thinking of English cities, you might list London, Birmingham, and Manchester. Just remove the "man" from Manchester, and you officially have a fourth city in mind. Yes, Chester is a place name, a Roman settlement in Chesire, England. His meaning even suggests a place; the name comes from the Latin castrum , meaning "fort." From the place came the surname in the twelfth century. Many place and surname-names are modern in usage, so it is no surprise Chester does not feel as if he belongs in either category.  Instead, Chester has a long history of use and qualifies as vintage. He entered use as a given name, alongside other surnames, four centuries after his surname adoption. Chester has seen consistent usage in England since then but has never been popular before this century. In the United States, though, Chester has a different story. In likely honor of former U.S. President Chester A. Arthur, Chester was a top 100 hit from 1880 through 1929 with peak populari...

A few days ago, I listed the top 100 girls' names starting with "A" as of 2024. Now I do the same with the boys' names: Asher (#20) Alexander (#27) Anthony (#44) Aiden (#47) Angel (#63) Andrew (#68) Adrian (#72) Axel (#78) Aaron (#79) August (#88) Amir (#95) Adam (#100) Atlas (#101) Arthur (#105) Austin (#107) Adriel (#109) Archer (#115) Arlo (#146) Ace (#165) Alan (#167) Amari (#172) Antonio (#180) Alejandro (#184) Ashton (#188) Andres (#197) Abraham (#204) Alex (#205) Adonis (#206) Ayden (#212) Abel (#220) Aziel (#253) Avery (#259) Atticus (#277) Angelo (#286) Ares (#295) Aidan (#312) Ali (#323) Archie (#333) Andre (#350) Anderson (#356) Ari (#399) Augustus (#408) Apollo (#414) Armani (#424) Alijah (#430) Asa (#474) Alexis (#484) Andy (#488) Atreus (#494) Adan (#495) Azariah (#503) Ariel (#511) Alonzo (#512) Ayaan (#518) Amiri (#533) Alessandro (#549) Augustine (#551) Armando (#566) Allen (#573) Alden (#576) Arturo (#577) Arjun (#581) Ander (#585) Anakin (#592) A...

Besides durability and popularity, sibling names are another controversial topic in the naming world. The idea of siblings' names being similar has sparked a lot of debate. We can expect sisters or brothers born within two years to be named, say, Alice and Clara, Henry and Leo. However, style preferences often change. Hence, many favor "using the name you love" rather than trying to fit in with the siblings. The reasoning is that, according to a Nameberry forum, "they are individual people, not matching Samsonite suitcases" ("Sister for Pearl-Viola, Iris, Astrid or Constance?").  Such advice is not surprising for the individualistic culture we live in. Yet, loneliness is higher than it was when American was more collectivistic. I think alienating a child from their family is no help.  This being said, I believe sibling names need to have something in common. As Laura Wattenberg wrote in the introduction to the 2019 edition of The Baby Name Wizard , g...

Here are the top 100 girls' names starting with "a" according to the 2024 data: Amelia (#3) Ava (#9) Aurora (#16) Aria (#26) Avery (#31) Abigail (#32) Adeline (#58) Alice (#62) Addison (#68) Ayla (#69) Autumn (#79) Audrey (#82) Athena (#90) Aaliyah (#93) Anna (#94) Allison (#99) Ailany (#101) Ariana (#103) Alaia (#120) Amara (#121) Ashley (#124) Aubrey (#130) Alina (#135) Amira (#136) Alana (#143) Arya (#162) Adalynn (#163) Anastasia (#166) Amaya (#169) Alani (#178) Andrea (#185) Annie (#191) Ada (#193) Adaline (#194) Arianna (#195) Ariella (#196) Ana (#204) Arabella (#206) Aitana (#211) Alaina (#212) Adalyn (#219) Alexandra (#221) Alora (#225) Amy (#228) Antonella (#233) Aliyah (#235) Aspen (#265) Adelaide (#271) Alessia (#281) Angela (#282) Amora (#285) Alanna (#289) Amari (#296) Ariel (#299) Amina (#307) Alayna (#312) Angelina (#313) Adelyn (#315) Adriana (#323) Ailani (#325) Aurelia (#334) Adelina (#341) Ariyah (#343) Aisha (#346) Annabelle (#349) Azalea (#358) Ala...