The Baby Name Wizard

WOW! I haven't hear of the "Aylin" names yet. They must not of made there way to the west yet.

Ok, I'll bite: What are the names that fill this criteria?

"16 names rhyming with AY-lin made the girls' top 1000 last year, with 8 more on the boys' list."

I'm particularly stumped by the boy's names.

Noooooo... I saw this coming, but still - it ruins the name Adalind forever. :-( And to a lesser extent, Ada... I wouldn't be surprised if that name takes off in a few years.

This seems to be the reverse of the trend for boys: adding letters to Aidan to create names.

I went through the top 1000 lists pretty quickly and here's what I found:

Girls: (in addition to Aylin itself)

Cailyn, Jailyn, Kaylen, Braelyn, Jaylyn, Kaylyn, Kaylynn, Jaylin, Jaylynn, Kailyn, Kaylin, Jaelyn. There's also Jalynn, which could be pronounced to rhyme with Aylin, I suppose. I'm missing a few, according to Laura's numbers.

Boys:

Jaylan, Jaylon, Jaylin, Jalen, Jaylen, Talen, Kelan, Talan, Talon... the last three (Kelan, Talan, Talon) are a bit of a stretch as far as the rhyme goes, so I think I'm still missing some.

A fourth possible derivation for you is the Manx Gaelic name Aalin, which means "beautiful." I've seen it spelled Aalyn in birth announcements from the Isle of Man:

http://gov.im/mnh/heritage/library/publicinfo/manxNames.xml

I think Adalyn/Adelyn is both an Adeline variant and inspired by Madelyn and Addison.

Kaelyn(337)
Jaelyn(360)
Kaylin(376)
Ayla(383)
Adeline(388)
Kailyn(488)
Jaylynn(543)
Jaylin(562)
Aylin(592)
Jaelynn(594)
Kaylynn(599)
Kaylyn(642)
Jaylyn(765)
Braelyn(811)
Adelyn(844)
Kaylen(849)
Adalyn(878)
Jalynn(904)
Jailyn(966)
Cailyn(974)
Okay that's 17 variations on the theme. Not as popular as the "Aiden's", but still pretty silly if you ask me. Also, what about the others that haven't made the top 1000. I've thought of Raelynn, Raylynn, Mailynn, Malynn, Maelynn, Braylyn, Braylynn, and Gaylynn. And of course if you add the infamous "e" to the end you get a multitude of additional alternates.

interesting

Galen is an "established" "legit" name, that rhymes, but is not in the top 1000 at the moment. it was 929 in the 90s, falling from a peak of 407 in the 40s. I guess the GAY sound is a turn off to a lot of babymakers nowadays.

for the life of me i cannot understand the appeal of these names. jaelyn = jailin'. i don't get it. aylin (as in english)? sounds like colloquial ailing to me. i know they are variations of caitlin, which in english sounds like two filler middle names smushed together. (sorry kates, lynns, and caitlins!)

Maureen,
Maybe I missed this announcement, but what did you name your 4th girl if you don't mind me asking?

I have a friend who recently named his daughter Adlay. Pronounced like Adlai Stevenson (at least the way I've always pronounced Adlai, I've heard it pronounced Ad-leye, too). I assume this is a spinoff of all the Ad names too, and am wondering if Adlai will possibly take off for girls with all kinds of unfortunate spelling variants.

If I were to go with an Ad name I would select Adela. It is one of the few underused names that offers two of the hottest trends available: the Ad beginning and the A ending. I wonder why this one hasn't taken off yet. I think that it is beautiful. Adelaide is nice too, but a little stuffy for my taste. Ada is a podunk town in southeast Oklahoma where I spent my early childhood (also the setting of John Grisham's Innocent Man), so the name is forever spoiled for me.

Isn't it funny how living near any town, city, mountain, lake or whatever with a personal name ruins the name as a name? Even if the place is nice, it never again feels personal or special. I think that is why many people with place names were named after places their parents visited or wanted to visit, not places their parents grew up. I might be wrong, but that's my perception.

We very nearly named our last child Ada Rosalie, and then turned it around to Rosalie Ada because we felt it would fit better with older sister Margaret Grace. Then it turned out we were having a boy anyway. ;) But we liked Ada and Rosalie because we felt they were old-fashioned and a little stuffy in a good way. Guess that won't last long with Ada...

(For the curious, we named our boy Robert Bingham, after a great-grandfather.)

Aylin seems to fit right in with all the 'din/'den/'don boy names as well (Landon, Aiden, Jaydin...). I expect that creative spellings like Aylinn will appear to emphasize the pronunciation.

Kristine, I think that every time I hear of a child named Camden or Brooklyn. I grew up in the Philly area, so to me, Camden is the place with an aquarium, and concert venue, and a lot of streets you do NOT want to be driving down after dark. It is also (I believe) the murder capital of New Jersey. It baffles me that people would want to give their child that name.

Now having been a New Yorker for the last ten years, Brooklyn just sounds sort of odd.

What is the pattern behind the headless phenomenon? Certain names wont work headless. To take my two favorites, I cannot conceive of anyone naming a child Osephine or Imon. Or Uliana. Or Athaniel. Is it the "A" beginning followed by a fairly strong consonant sound (d and t) that makes a headless name "work"?

On a totally off topic topic:

Has anyone here seriously considered changing their name as an adult. I know a version of this question was posed a while ago, and the most common answer seemed to be that everyone debated a name change as a teenager and then grew out of it.

Personally I never grew out of my dislike of my name, and have always considered changing it... but never as seriously as now. We are about to move to a brand new city where we don't really know anyone yet which seems like the perfect opportunity to change if I'm ever going to.

Part of me feels really vain for even considering it. And part of me says, I'll live for 50 or 60 or 70 more years, why live with a name I've never liked?

Coll, Uliana is a name in several languages, including Russian.

And unfortunately, I can see some parents going for some of the others, too, just because of how "different" they sound. However, the head-lopping *definitely* wouldn't work with the name Morgan.

On places influencing naming...

The place I live inspired me to consider two names - Gaines and Lanier - which I like, but DH says that people would connect the names too closely to the places. I guess one day I may move or grow out of liking them.

captcha names: keifer and trinity

Karyn, that's interesting. I should have figured...Uli is a relatively common name in parts of Europe, right? I'm still standing by the impossibility of Osephine, however,

My friend named her little girl (age 10 mos now) Adelyn Grace, and another friend's mom is named Adelina (add-deh-LEEN-nuh).
I also know a little girl named Abelyn, after her father, Abel.
re Place names, there don't seem to be too many city names near me that work as people names, although I have heard of the city where I grew up being used. But it's a nice enough place that it doesn't bother me. Our friend named her daughter Cambria after the town in California... it's where they honeymooned, and while their dd wasn't conceived there (she was their 3rd), they weren't ever planning on a girl and were stuck for a name. But I think that one works.

Kristine, I've never thought about changing my name as an adult, but I worked with a woman who did. She really disliked her given name of Deborah; it never fit her sense of who she was, and I suspect she felt awash in a sea of Deborahs. In her mid-30's she legally changed her name to Devon. I met her after the name change, and she really seemed like a Devon to me--she inhabited the name with ease and confidence. It was only during a discussion about her family and childhood that I learned she had grown up as Debbie. By then, happy with her new name, the Deborah part of her past was presented as an interesting tidbit.

In another case, our neighbor changed his name as a teenager, shedding the name of a father to whom he wanted to ties. He went from a name with strongly Hispanic roots to a name that could have been attached to a pilgrim, and at the time I thought I would never get used to it. Now I can remember calling him by his former name, but my emotional connection to him is as (insert new name here). I think that his mother's acceptance of the name change made a big difference in that situation; it made the transition easier for everyone who knew them.

Would you mind me asking if you have a new name in mind? Just curious...always curious about names, you know. :)

I worked with a man who changed his name from a very conventional one (Michael) to one I've never heard anywhere else, so I don't know if he made it up. It only took me a couple of months before I couldn't really think of him as Michael any more.

RE: naming babies from place names recalls Picabo Street, a skier in the Olympics of 1994. Quoting from Wikepedia -

"Her given name was inspired by the nearby Idaho town of Picabo, Idaho, (pronounced "Peekaboo"), which in turn takes its name from a Native American word meaning "shining waters"."

I actually sort of like Osephine. It seems like it could plausibly have the same kind of vibe as names like Otteline or Ottilie or Delphine. I'd pronounce it OSS-a-phine, though, to rhyme with cross, rather than OH-sa-phine. Not that I would actually name my child this...

Kristine -- I think especially with your upcoming move, it would be an ideal time to change your name. It's not exactly the same thing, but I used to work with someone who we called by her fn. Turned out everyone else in her life called her by her mn so eventually she asked us to do so. It was awkward at first, but it didn't take long to adjust to the new name.

Coll-Camden means something different to me... As a Marylander, I think of Camden Yards, the beautiful ballpark of our Orioles! In this area, there are a glut of dogs named Camden, named after the ballpark. I don't know any people Camdens though.

Just glancing at the top 1000 girls names, I can see several names that might get their first letter(s) chopped to make another name:

Ailey (Hailey, Bailey, etc)
Ayla (Kayla)
Andra (Alexandra)
Aya (Maya)
Abriella (Gabriella)
Ara (Sara)
Arilyn (Marilyn)

Kristine, this is one of the most interesting questions ever posed here, in my opinion. I, too, would like to know if you have a name "possibility" or a list of them waiting in the wings?

Were I you, I'd consider taking a nickname from "Kristine" or a telescoped version of your name or combo of your first and middle names, possibly.

I envy you since you could derive my favorite nickname (usually used for "Katherine" but plausibly applicable here)-- "Kit". I think it is so charming, breezy yet reminiscent of prior centuries. If it seemed too truncated, "Kitt" would work as well. But that's just my very specific taste, not shared by many, I suppose. Glamorous cabaret singer Eartha Kitt gave her daughter her (Eartha's) last name Kitt as a first name.

If I were to change my name, I'd have to go with a recognizable version of my own name-- probably "Nell". For me, it's sentimentally important to maintain the connection to what I've been called, and what my parents chose for me.

But I realize there are all kinds of different viewpoints on this. Would love to hear further thoughts from you and others...

I don't know anyone who has legally changed her/his name, but I know someone who decided to start going by her middle name when she was 23 or so. It was because her first name was Anglo and her middle name was Japanese, and she wanted to use a name that connected to her Japanese culture. Everyone in her life (including close family) had been calling her by the Anglo name her whole life, but the transition seemed to go well for her. I got used to the new name in just a few weeks. I also know someone who changed his name in the process of transitioning from female to male (though he never changed it legally), and that, too, went well with his friends. Don't know how the family felt about it, though.

Now I'm starting to think about what I'd rename myself if I had to... what an interesting question!

Aylin (EYE-lin) sounds so much like Isla (EYE-la). And since I know two new baby girls named Isla, it makes sense that Aylin won't be far behind. In fact, more people may be attracted to Aylin because it avoids the "Iss-la" pronounciation that is currently irritating my friends.

Yeah, Isla isn't "headless," but it sounds like a headless Lila, Kyla, etc. Same with Ellen/Helen and Elena/Helena --all established names, but there's a possibility some would use the E- versions to join the trend, even without realizing that's part of their decision. What sounds "fresh" and why isn't always something folks can explain.

But if we start seeing Ittany, Icole, and Shley, I give up!

Or Atthew, Arles and Ristopher.

The name Ayla (EYE-la) is one I've seen several times around here in recent years. I wonder if Ayla has inspired Aylin in some cases.

My husband changed his name from Kenneth to Tom (his grandfather's name) when he was in college. His sisters call him Tom but use Ken to talk about their childhood memories. His parents use Ken more than Tom, although his father is better about sticking to Tom. He said that even as a child he hated the name Kenneth and didn't feel like it fit him.

My old roommate knew a woman who changed her name every five years. She didn't do it legally (too much trouble), but instructed all of her friends and family to make the changes along with her. Many people, of course, couldn't make the transitions. So it was very easy to tell when people had first been introduced to this woman by the name that they used! My roommate was trying to get used to the changed from Ellen to Quinn and was having trouble.

I know an Andra who has got to be in her 40's at least. and Imon wouldn't work for a boy but it really reminds me of Iman--itself a truncated version of Imani I think. Or Amani to use the form I've heard more frequently for East African boys.

but Ittany is bad, just bad.

Are we all writing down variations on Iley for next year's pool?

Wasn't there an Ayla in Clan of the Cave Bear? It seems to me we've discussed this one before.

What is interesting to me here, is that I think Isla/Ayla has a very different feel than something like Adalyn or Aylin. I guess it's the lyn sound, but I don't see a mom considering Ayla or Isla giving much consideration to the latter two. Anyone else?

Don't forget Adair-I'm bound and determined to sell it to someone on this board.

Hi Kristine, I can answer your question having changed my name fairly recently as an adult!

I had never liked my name. I actually think it helped hammer a sense of low self-esteem into me as a child (if that doesn't come off as too melodramatic). My parents had actually always said, when I complained about it, "Just change it", but I felt it would look silly to walk into school one day and announce "My name is now 'X'"; I had similar concerns about it being 'vain' to change it. Also, as I grew older I started to get compliments on my name, whereas as a child I was mostly getting puzzled looks and mispronunciations. So I just thought, whatever, other people seem to like it so I'll just stick with it.

Then one day, I was nearing the end of my degree, and I was on the phone sorting out some bills when the person asked me for my name. I told her, and she repeated it back to me so mangled (and it really isn't an unheard-of name), that I just thought, stuff this, life is too short to be bashfully mumbling a name I don't even like! Also by then I was my own person, living independently away from my hometown. Even though I'd never considered changing my name before, my "new name" just came to me like it had been there all along; I never considered any others. It's short, sweet and everyone can say it! I changed my "old name" to be my new middle name (I didn't have one before), and the two names sound really good together.

So, I'm really, really pleased with my name change and I almost wish I'd done it sooner! My family, and friends I've known since school, will always call me by the "old name", but now at work and with new people I'm the "new name". Funnily enough my boyfriend and some of my newer friends started calling my by the "new name" just for the novelty of it, and it's actually stuck, so I get called both by them, which is more than I had expected. I respond to both names (I never "forget" when someone's calling me by the new name), but being called by the "new name" almost feels like receiving a compliment, and more 'me'. I haven't had any hassle so far, either; it's all gone very smoothly.

So, in short, life *is* too short in my opinion, and now sounds like the perfect time for you if you really want to do it. Maybe you could keep your old name as a middle name like I did, to make the transition less scary and hold on to your old identity (for practical as well as sentimental/family reasons - say, if you have to pick up a parcel addressed to "Kristine Smith" it's better to have ID saying "Isabel Kristine Smith", for example, than just "Isabel Smith").

J&H's mom, I know someone named Adair! She's probably about 23 or 24. She has an older sister named Lucinda (Lucy) who's a friend of mine, and a younger, high-school-aged brother named Mark. They all grew up in Manhattan. The name suits her well--she's quite brainy and also rather sophisticated.

Lucie, now I'm beyond curious as to what your old and new names are. Is Lucie one of them? I of course respect internet privacy desires, but you are dangling tempting bait in front of a group of NEs.

Coll... I will reveal that my 'new' name is Lucy, spelled that way. I've taken to using the Lucie spelling on the internet, just because I find it looks nicer in computer print (whereas I love handwriting out the swirly capital L and y of Lucy!), and it creates a little 'alias'. My old name is nothing hideous or even extremely unusual, but I just loathed wearing it so much as a child that I could never be comfortable with it as an adult. Sorry to have dangled the bait!

I have no desire to change my name. As a 1979 baby named Jessica, You would think that my life would be inundated with others just like me. WRONG!! But if I were to change my name.... I dont know. I may very well choose Mary. huh. I will have to ponder that.

I think moving is a great time to implement a change. BUT make sure that you are not going to feel like a stranger in your own house. New life and new name can cause an identity crisis. Would you legally change it or just create and alias?

My friend Christina has "always" been Tina but would love to be Christina. She has given up on introducing herself as Christina bc then when people call her that she has this subconsious reaction "O yeah, those people dont know me very well."

Imon reminds me of Imus. As in Don.

Coll, it's funny you know sisters Adair and Lucy... I know a woman named Lucy Adair (fn mn)! That's the only Adair I've ever known in real life, though it's not even her first name. I think it's a great name.

Guest, I just realized you asked about my fourth daughter. We went with Delphine Lucia.

Adelyn was going to be our girl's name, but it is out now that I realize it is so trendy. I love the George Strait song Adelida, so it was a take-off from that not Madelyn or Addison, but oh well. There are other contenders.

I have never liked my name, but unless I was moving somewhere alone, where I knew nobody, I wouldn't consider changing it. If I did, I would love to be either Kate or Dempsey (my absolute guiltiest pleasure name EVER, lol). The main reason I wouldn't change it is because I know my mom loves the name, and that's why she gave it to me. I've never told her that I don't like it, I worry it would hurt her feelings (and for her, it *totally* would).
I have a friend who has always gone by her given Chinese name, but is now wanting to go by Cindy. It's really hard for me, after 12 years, to change what I call her, but I'm trying. We work together and she did it mid-year, so maybe after summer break it'll be easier.
I LOVE Adair. It would never go with my last name (Italian, starts with A, 4 syllables, unusual), but it's going on my suggestion-list. Great name!

Is everyone thinking Adair for a girl? Now, I remember coming across it in a P.G. Wodehouse story ("Mike and Psmith", anyone?), for a boy - well, I guess it was his surname, being set in a boarding school, but I remember that "Adair" was the golden sporting hero of the school! It's never made it onto my favourites list, but I've always liked it - the jaunty sound, and the look of it (I was so disappointed to learn that the similar looking Scottish Alasdair is just pronounced "Alister"!). I guess because of the similarity to Claire and Adele, it could work well on a girl too.

I seriously considered changing my name from Lisa to Elizabeth when I moved across country 10 years ago, but I feared that I might offend my parents. I wish I'd gone through with it because I find that I still make deprecating remarks about my first name whenever I am introduced. Elizabeth seemed like the most logical new name since Lisa is derived from it, and people would assume that Lisa was a silly childhood nickname.

Kristine, I'd keep your current name as a middle name. Is your middle name something reasonable? Could you simply start answering to your middle name?

I know at least 3 people who hated their names and changed them.

Jennifer/Jenny to Linnea

Beatrice to Star

Unknown name to C4iji (take out the 4, pronounced Cee-gee)

Linnea is the only one I knew both before and after. This was years ago and I still have difficulty using the correct name when talking about her.

Star is in her mid-30s. I can't imagine her as a Beatrice. I think of Beatrice as a dainty prim and proper British woman. She's a LOL funny effusive Hispanic woman. (I don't know if that is why she dislikes her original name; that's just my take.)

The last person won't disclose her original name. From what little I know, it was a benign name like Deborah.

I say go ahead and change it for the move. However, I wouldn't try to force old family and friends to adopt it, or get offended if they don't. I would just tell them the new name and let them decide.

FYI, this was my list of 16 "AY-lin" names:

Kaylin
Jaylin
Aylin
Kaylen
Jaylen
Jaylynn
Kaylynn
Kaylyn
Jaylyn
Kailyn
Jailyn
Cailyn
Jaelynn
Kaelyn
Jaelyn
Jalynn

Did I miss any?

Lucie: Thank you SO MUCH for sharing your experience. I found it really, really helpful. I, too, hate giving my name out at restaurants, on the phone, etc., even though there is nothing wrong with it, per se. I just don't like it.
My mom, too, has said, "just change it." Even my husband is on board. So I think I will do it.

Now that I’m seriously considering changing my name, a whole world of possibilities has opened up that never felt real before. Among them:

Anne. The name I’ve liked the longest. However, it is my 3-year-old daughter’s first name. She is Anne Juliet, called Juliet. I would hope that if I changed my name to Anne she would treasure the enhanced connection between us. But she might equally well - maybe even at the same time - resent me treading on her own first name.
Anneliese
Beatrix. Like this so much, but not sure I want to steal it from my future daughter.
Cicely. Might be confusingly close to my childhood nickname, Krissy.
Clare
Esme. My husband likes this one, but only pronounced Ez-mee. I’ve been told this pronunciation is incorrect, but we’ve known actual women who pronounced their name like this, so it's a little up in the air.
Fiona. Only concern is that this one might shoot up the popularity charts.
Ione
Jane
Joan
Liesel
Lucy
Laurel
Margaret
Marguerite
Marie. My actual middle name, which would make the transition easier. A little seventies, though.
Violet

I am also completely open to suggestions. Everyone’s honest thoughts would be MOST appreciated. I am not at all sensitive, so go ahead and opine.

To those who suggested taking my first name as a middle name, I might. And I definitely wouldn't force old friends or family to call me a new name or be offended. I just remembered a family story. My grandpa's name was Charles Rodney. At home in South Dakota, he was always called Rodney. Then he joined the navy, and his superior called him Charles. When he didn't respond, he got in trouble! Eventually he started going by Charles, and that is how I and everyone who knew him after age twenty or so referred to him. But back home in South Dakota he was always called Rodney. I imagine it would be similar with me.
Sorry for taking up so much room on the post. I couldn't make this decision without input from this blog, I'm on it so much.

Kristine, my favorites from the names you suggested are Fiona and Marguerite (I really like Marguerite). Good luck!

Wow, so fascinating to imagine changing your name as an adult. As a bearer of a name I've never identified with (not the one I use here, but a dated 70s surfer name that's never felt to me like _me_), I'm envious of your chutzpah ... but at over 40, entrenched in the place I'm likely to stay for a long time, and with a career that depends on name recognition (I'm a journalist), I just don't think I could do this.

I have no idea how to advise Kristine on name choices as I don't know her taste ... but I will say that currently trendy names like Fiona or Violet or Beatrix (I know, it's not on the charts, but it still sounds like a name that would be trending upward in upscale playgrounds) are a bit odd on a grown woman. Why not save Beatrix for your future daughter (it goes well with Juliet) and go with one of the My favorite of the names you list is probably Laurel, but Clare and Anneliese and Marie are all lovely -- which do you feel the most like?

Krissy is a bit confusing -- if your real name is Kristine, does this really constitute a name change? If it feels like it does to you, that would certainly cut down on the embarrassment factor of telling everyone, 'Please start calling me this now," since you'd just be asking them to switch to a nickname.

And finally: I'm kind of a stickler when it comes to name-theft issues (like, I really would think it was annoying if a friend used any part of my daughter's name for their child), so I'd avoid taking your daughter's first name even if she doesn't use it. But others, including your daughter, might be fine with it.

Oh, rereading your post I see that "Krissy" wasn't put forth as a new name choice -- you were just saying that was your childhood nn. Sorry.

"Last February I talked about the emerging style of updating trendy names by lopping off their initial consonants."

Having a very old-fashioned "headless" name myself, I just wanted to point out that it may be a RE-emerging style, but it is in no way new. However old the name Ellen is, it has always been a derivative of Helen, an even older name. I'm sure there are others, but this was (obviously) the easiest for me to comment on.

Hi again, Kristine! I'm so glad I could help, I was worried I'd written a bit of an essay! Of your list of possible names, Violet really stands out for me, it's beautiful. I like most of your list, although I'm not sure how to pronounce Ione (eye-oh-nee?).

Actually, how worried (or not) are you about ease of pronunciation/spelling? For me, even after having been a lifelong name-nerd, I suddenly found that when choosing myself a name I was strongly drawn to an simple favourite of early childhood, Lucy. I think choosing such an 'easy' name has helped smooth things, especially as I was so self-conscious of my old name. Of course, this may not be an issue for you - in fact, maybe it would be a pleasure spelling out your beautiful new name instead of trotting out the disliked old one!

Regardless of that, my favourites from your list are: Violet, Lucy (of course!), Jane, Joan, Liesel and I love Cecily spelled this way, although I appreciate Cicely too (I know Cicely is as "legit" as Cecily, but my first thought upon seeing Cicely is an impulse to change the 'i' and the 'e' around to make the beautiful Cecily!). I'm sort of ambivalent about Margaret, but I love the opportunity it gives for the nickname Meg.

Keep us updated and best wishes!