(For real, this time!)
Perhaps you've heard, the economy's taken a bit of a stumble lately? As families cut back and surveys reveal a bleak mood, the natural question in these parts is how the downturn will play out in baby names.
The popular idea in the press and the blogosphere is that parents will retreat to the reliable comfort of classic names. A few reporters have tried to pry this prediction out of me. (One was particularly eager for me to forecast a comeback for Faith and Hope. I had to break it to him that it's too late, they're already back.) In fact, some news reports have claimed that the return to tradition has already begun. Take the Reuters article titled "Parents get serious about baby names in tough year," with its bold opening statment: "Most parents have abandoned unusual names for their children..."
The idea sounds plausible, because many choices do work this way in economic downturns. In the world of investing, it's called the "flight to quality." The idea is that in uncertain times, people make the safest possible bets and aim for lasting value. Consumers, similarly, drop luxury in favor of utility.
Yet there are also good reasons to expect name trends to behave differently from investments or consumer goods. The most basic is that baby names are free. In a time of belt-tightening, why not indulge in a cost-free extravagance? Anastasia won't set you back a penny more than Ann. In fact, lower-income parents are more likely to try unusual, eye-catching and newly-introduced names -- quite different from, say, food purchasing patterns.
A second reason is found in the motivations of modern baby namers. Many parents who seek the unusual are convinced that distinctive names will give their kids an advantage in life. Think of it like a creatively packaged product standing out on a store shelf. The tougher the competitive landscape, the more this perceived advantage should matter to parents.
Finally, there's the fact that the movement away from tradition has been accelerating for years. An immediate surge of traditional naming would be the fashion equivalent of a runaway freight train suddenly backing back up a mountain.
So where do the claims of reversal come from? If you read the Reuters article closely, you'll see they (and may others) were inspired by a press release from the online parenting community BabyCenter.com. In the release, the BabyCenter folks note the rise of certain specific traditional names among their users. But is there a consistent pattern?
In fact, if you look at the BabyCenter popularity lists from the last several years, 2008 looks like more of the same. The bellwether traditional classics like John, James and William continued their steady descent down the rankings. And if you tally up the top 20 for boys and girls, as a group the 2008 names were much less popular a century ago than the 2006 names. In other words, no "flight to quality" has been spotted so far (and don't believe everything you read in the paper).
So let's toss out our preconceptions and return to the question: what effect will the recession have on naming patterns? To form a hypothesis, we can look to historical precedent. Did baby naming change during the Great Depression? And if so, was there the retreat to strength and safety that so many observers expect today?
To be continued...
Comments
Having a very common first and last name can pose real problems in life! I work with a lady with a very common first and last name. She is fighting to clear her credit report after it was ruined by someone who lives in her same town with the same name. It's been a lot of hard work on her part. You'd think a simple case of mistaken identity wouldn't be so difficult to clear up, but it is. So I agree with an earlier poster, if you have a common last name, a more uncommon first name can be better.
GirlRandolph: do you really think Maxine is cute? That's a family name for me but I've been considering it for a mn because I feel it'd be rough to saddle a kid with as a fn, and of course my Samantha/popular name lovin' husband feels the same way and hates Maxine. I worry about kids teasing and maxi-pad references...
Random question: Do you think Lucy could be used as a nn for Louise/Louisa? I realize anything CAN be used as a nn for anything, but do you think a parent would get a lot of grief for that pairing of nn when its not common?
I also agree that sometimes the oddly paired sibsets can be caused by mom naming one, dad naming the next, etc. I have friends who have very traditional oldest and youngest with a Kalani as the middle child.
nikki, yikes about the mistaken identity!
i do think maxine is cute. i hadn't thought about the maxi-pad reference, but i guess it could be a problem... is it just me, or is that a term that's gradually fading? everyone i know just says "pad." but obviously it is a term you use, so perhaps it's still common. i do like it though; i think it's fun. but it would also make a great middle name!
and wow, kalani is definitely a contrast to any traditional name...
Emilyrae--
I don't know anything about Firefly and the names of its characters, but, for what it's worth, Inara is a Latvian name. There was an Inara, born in Latvia, in my high school class. Also two other Latvian girls, both named Dacey....
I looked up Inara in Namipedia and it says: In Hittite - Hurrian mythology, Inara (إنارة) was the daughter of the Storm-god Teshub or Tarhunt and the goddess of the wild animals of the steppe ("potnia theron"; in Greek mythology Artemis).
I also like Morena, the name of the actress who played Inara on Firefly.
miriam, you always know things! i have no idea how, but i'm always impressed. thanks so much for the info on inara; i find that very interesting. for what it's worth, firefly is supposed to portray a time in the future where the cultures of the world have sort of melded. thus there are a wide variety of names: malcolm, simon, jayne, river, inara, kaywinnit lee, zoe, etc...
thanks for your expertise :]
oh, wow, everyone has information. thanks anne!
Hi all,
I'm a longtime lurker, first time poster- LOVE this blog. We found out today that our second child will be a boy; so its let the name negotiations begin (we had total agreement on a girl's name-darn!). Would love any of your ideas.
Our first son is Calvin and I tend to lean toward classic, 'timeless' names that are not within the top 100 of names. My husband is a bit more open to all options. Here is our list:
Dexter
Otto (family name)
Augustus (to be called Gus or Augie)
Cash (my husband's choice)
PS: Our girl's name was Penelope- just to give you an idea.
Thanks for your thoughts!
RE: Maxine
I adore Maxine. Really! It's one of my all time faves. To me it has the same flavour as Sadie - a little spicy without being tawdry. Plus it yeilds the adorable nn Max! There's lots of names people aren't considering and this seems like one to me!
Plus, I agree with emilyrae.
I think we worry to much about protecting our kids from mocking. Kids get mocked. There's the outright obvious targets (I loved my grandfather, but Hyman's not in the running for any child of mine!) Other than that, I think you are safe.
My feeling is, if there is a real problem, you can deal with it then. I think, how you deal with a problem matters more than the actual problem.
Plus, kids make fun of other kids, no matter what their names are. I have a common biblical girl's name and they made fun of my name something awful. But I always LOVED my name. I knew it was ME they were teasing. My name could have been Jennifer and they would have teased me! In fact, I knew quite a few Jennys that were teased.
27Jennifers,
Dexter--goes great with Calvin, but the combination sort of sounds like an elite group of computer hackers.
Augustus--love the nn Gus, the full name is just too much name for me. Not interested in August?
Otto-- I like quite a bit. Short, snappy, definitely masculine.
Cash--I like this as a nn for Cassius, but the name alone has too much word baggage for me.
Good luck!
27 Jennifers,
Baxter sounds similar to Dexter and no one seems to be considering it.
I also really like Desmond.
To the person who posted (several pages back) about the possibility of the -iah names going to the girls (Isaiah, Josiah...), I think most of these names are so firmly tied to Old Testament characters that people would balk at giving them to their daughters.
Then again, I would balk at Elliot, Christopher, Scottie or Neal - but I've heard them all on girls within the past year.
27 jennifers, you have fun taste. i like all of your choices. :]
girlrandolph, i think you make a good point about teasing. it's good to avoid the obvious targets, but perhaps it's not best to obsess. kids will be teased, regardless of names.
also, i have the same feelings about -iah names going over to the girly side. it seems unlikely that something so strongly rooted in old testament men could be used for a girl. but, as you say, crazy things are happening....did you really meet a little girl named christopher?? that's so bizarre to me!
also, i agree that baxter is a fun alternative to dexter (not that dexter needs an alternative--it's a great name!)
Jenny L3igh: Good point about "common" names in the workplace. My program (I'm in grad school) also has multiple Katies and Jameses. Also Julies. and Staci/eys. I guess it is overwhelmingly folks born '60s-80s (a young program).
Re: inara: there's one in firefly? I think there's a Lake Inara in The Golden Compass (book version). I think it's related to the witches, like someone is the witch of Lake Inara or something.
27 Jennifers: I read Calvin and Otto together as very hip. Calvin and Cash is a little cute b/c of the alliteration, but sounds kind of cool also. On their own, I think I like Otto and Dexter best.
I am glad others came and chimed in about Inara. A friend named her dd Inara - and yes they are fans of the show. It works for them because mom's name is Ath3na - another goddess.
robynt, interesting bit about inara in the golden compass. i'd never heard it outside this tv show. it's interesting that she's a witch in the golden compass. in firefly, she's very glamorous, composed, graceful, well-spoken, and educated. but then who's to say that a witch can't be glamorous and educated too?
joni, you know a real inara! that's excellent! i think it's such a pretty name.
27 Jennifers-First off I like your screen name!
I think to go with Calvin I pick Dexter or August. August"us" sounds too stuffy to me. Otto is nms as it reminds me of a Dr Suess book I have entitled Fish Out Of Water. The fish's name is Otto.
Re MAxine: I think the maxi-pad reference would not be made so much by the "younger" generation. To me though it screams diner/waitress date-stamped, but to each their own.
Also, I was the one who mentioned the -iah names going girl. While I haven't seen any IRL it just seemed like the right combo or sounds to express what I was trying to say upthread. For those who missed it, I was simply expressing that I thought it had to be the right kind of sounds for a boy name to go girl. Like Christopher has the Chris from Christine and the -pher of Jennifer so not that weird.
zoerhenne, interesting point about having the "right" sounds to switch over. it's a really good point, and i think you're probably right. it's just so hard for me to get over the masculine image i have that comes with christopher and isaiah and ryan and various names that are being used for girls. maybe it's just something i have to get used to. after all, no one blinks an eye at ashley, leslie, taylor, or riley.
27 Jennifers- I like Dexter of your choices.
Side note-- A little girl at a sporting event I recently attended was picked for a raffle. The raffle guy noted that her name was Sydney and "she was named after the main character in Scream."
It made me laugh, and she was cute.
I'm glad someone else brought up the Firefly Simon and River - I always thought it was odd, but have put it down to eclectic naming on that show. The other Joss Whedon shows seem a little better name style wise, and not as bad as Shonda Rimes shows!
I was going to mention (before someone else did) that I think if a guy is uber-masculine they can get away with pretty much any name - i.e. the Jayne example. It is just hard to know what your kid is going to turn out like. I agree that it is best just to minimise obvious teasing potential names and leave the rest up to the kids and deal with it when it happens. Kids will always find something to tease about if they want to, whether it's a name, looks, money etc.
Robyn T, my married surname sounds quite 'gruff' because it is Germanic (and no one can pronounce it properly anyway), 1 syllable, similar to Worth, just replace the middle 'or' with another sound. Hmmm, no one can spell it either because it is an unusual combination of letters for the English language, so when you spell it people, say what?. My maiden name on the other hand (which I still use about half the time is pretty common and probably quite 'pretty' and easy to pronounce and spell but is mixed with a very common first name for my generation. My husband tried to sell the name change thing to me by telling me I'd be more unique if I changed my name, of course I went and googled the new name (prior to getting married) only to find someone with my exact, soon-to-be name, with a less than desirable reputation. Not happy!
27 Jennifers:
Of your list of potential boy names I like Dexter best, and the suggestion of Baxter.
Thought I would also suggest Axel, Felix, Barnaby, Archer, Giles, Theo, Porter, Turner, Rex, Milo, Alden, Bruno, Truman,
I think Axel & Felix have a very timeless traditional with very little use and have fun sound. What do you think?
I recall that the actress who played the femaile nurse on the old TV show Trapper John MD was named Christopher.
27Jennifers-- I like Dexter best. I don't know if you use nns for your children, but I imagine Cal and Penny going well with Dex.
And, our news... Leah Josephine was born on Saturday, 4/4, a healthy and beautiful little girl, younger sister to Lucia Kay. Her first name is pronounced Lay-uh and her family nn will be Leah Jo.
I struggled a bit with having two L names for my daughters, but decided in the end that it would be fine. Our oldest goes by Lulu and this is different enough from Leah Jo so that it doesn't sound overly matchy to me. Also, both Leah and Joseph(ine) are family names so our clan was very pleased with our choice. It feels good to honor the people that we love.
Thanks to everyone for all your input over the past few months-- it's been so fun tossing out names to all of you. Cheers!
has anyone ever heard the name nina pronounced "nine-uh" as opposed to "neen-uh" ? can it be pronounced either way?
Congratulations, Prairie Dawn!
27 Jennifers: I agree with those who like Dexter from your list, and Baxter sounds good too.
Have we talked about the new Bachelorette baby yet?
Blakesly!
Maybe someone can point me to the post, if it's been covered. I haven't been around for ages.
Love Calvin and Otto together! Both classic w/ a bit of quirkiness and work well w/ future Penelope.
If you go with Cash, consider the full names Cassius or Cassian (just for the sake of options).
Also, speaking of options, if you end up using Penelope later on, keep Pippa in mind as a nn. One of my very favorites.
J&H's mom-Check pg 2 or 3 on this thread. We glossed over it briefly. It is strange but not as bad as Petal Blossom Rainbow was the conclusion of most.
Congrats Prairie Dawn! While most of me is happy that you have a beautiful new healthy baby girl, I am a teeny tiny bit sad that it wasnt a boy. You had such a strugle with the boys name I was curious as to what you would decide in the end.
27Jennifers...just one more option, you could call Otto, Otis.
Thanks, Zoerhenne!
And, many, many, congratulations, Prairie Dawn. What a beautiful choice.
Suddenly, I seem to be able to scroll on this site properly! How thrilling!
A few odd thoughts...
We know of a 12 year old named Maxi.
Apparently, it's never commented on.
I can't imagine.
I have seen Blakesly on other baby name sites. I think it's a combination of moms wanting to be creative and still wanting something feminine. The other I've seen in a similar vein is Briley.
Both make me shudder, but my tastes run towards the conventional.
My current favs. for the name pool
Isla
Asher
Piper
I'm really debating between Isla and Ayla. I'm also considering Brielle, but I can't quite bare to enter it, Lydia, and any of the Twilight names, maybe Belle or Jasper.
I hope you're all well, especially the new moms and moms to be!
All this talk of uber-masculine men being able to pull off any name coupled with the talk of teasing based on names reminds me of the song "A Boy Named Sue" (written by Shel Silverstein and song by Johnny Cash). Anybody else?
I hope its okay to just jump in here. I'm new to this blog, but I've enjoyed reading your discussions.
I have a nicknaming question I wanted to get feedback on. My son's name is Hayden and when we named him I honestly didn't realize that his name, and those that rhyme with it, were so popular and trendy. Where I live I hear Kaden more often, but it still makes me cringe when I imagine him not only being one of many Haydens in school, but also getting mixed up with the other rhymes. For that reason I've been recently trying to come up with a nickname for him. Up till now I couldn't think of anything that directly comes off his name, but finally I realized that nicknames don't have to be that direct. (duh!) I've thought of a few on my own:
Hal
Hank
Dean
Dane
but none that really stand out to me. Does anyone have some suggestions on a good nickname for Hayden?
**sung
Hayes as possible nn for Hayden....
When I was in college I knew a guy named Rutherford Burchard Hayes lastname, and he went by Hayes which we all thought was a cool name, way cooler than Rutherford.
Let me take the other side of the girls getting boy names debate. Sorry for the harshness in advance.
When people complain that there are hardly any good boy names because they are being taken by the girls, I can't help but think that the poster needs to widen her horizon of names. There are so many great names out there!
Just because you know some girls named James and Brian doesn't mean the names are going to the girl side. Sometimes it seems like people are crying fire when its really just an isolated spark unlikely to ignite anything. No point in getting worked up over something that is a statistical anomaly.
The feminist position is not to stick only to traditionally girl names, but to give a daughter any name you want, regardless of how it is traditionally used. If you want to be radically feminist, you would give a son any name you want, regardless of how it is traditionally used.
Congratulations Prairie Dawn! I have my own Leia (she's 4), pronounced Lay-uh, and I think it's one of the prettiest names. Of course, many people pronounce it Lee-uh, but whatever. We get many compliments on it, and haven't heard it very often at all. Her younger brother has nicknamed her Lei-Lei, which is super cute. Enjoy your new baby :)
All the best, Prairie Dawn! Leah Josephine is a beautiful choice. I hope she sleeps well for you.
I was also going to suggest Hayes as a nickname for Hayden. I think it's a great name that pays homage to the original name while giving off a totally different vibe.
Blakesley slides around in my mouth. I bet they are already using a nickname for her. Her name is just too hard to say easily.
Prairie Dawn, great news! I think your daughters' names are wonderful together!
27 Jennifers, either Dexter or Augustus would be great, and both are excellent with Calvin.
As a long-time proponent of Augustus, I rather hope you'll resist the currently popular truncated form, "August". With due respect to its many enthusiasts, I believe however that it will be likely to be date-stamped, and it is much more easily pigeon-holed as "hipnik", (which to my mind is undesirable, but maybe not to yours!) Augustus will always be classic, as are Calvin and Penelope. It is ultimately a bolder, more individual choice too, I do believe...
Ooh, I like Miriam's "Hayes" nickname for Hayden! Although more abrupt and not quite as good, there's also "Hud" which was an old English corruption of "Hugh" (resulting in surnames like Hudson etc.) but would work here as well...
knp-- Have you considered "Terence" as an alternative to "Taran"? Comes from the Latin "Terentius", the name of a Roman clan. I always think of the English playwright, Terence Rattigan... Of course, it is a different style than Taran, but if you are looking for a sound-alike that is still clearly masculine...
Going in yet another style direction, there is the handsome surname-name, "Tennant". Lends itself to nice nicknames too.
re: Inara: Oh but the witches in Golden Compass are... well they're not like the Halloween witches with the nose warts. Like you said, "glamorous, composed, graceful, well-spoken, and educated." I think the witches in Golden Compass could be described that way.
re: Nina: yes, i have heard of it being pronounced nine-ah, but i think this is much less common. i think i've only heard OF it and not actually met someone...
re: Otis: ooh, i love it! I knew a really cool guy named Otis.
Going back to the Firefly names, I loved the name Inara. The actress was on another geektacular show, Stargate SG-1 and had a great name on there, too- Adria. I loved them both. I know it's been mentioned before, but it can never be said enough- I love the name of the baby from Willow, Elora Danan. Best name ever.
I like the name Baxter. I wanted the name Max for awhile, but it's getting too popular. I really like this alternative (quickly putting it in my name file). Dexter is nice, but I think of the serial killer from the TV show. Sorry :(
I went to school with a girl named Nina who pronounced her name Nine-ah. Her family was from India, but I have no idea if her name was Indian (her sister's name was Bella).
Miriam- Thanks, that's exactly what I was wondering!
RobynT- I'm not surprised that you have a bunch of Katies in your program, but I guess I hadn't thought about how common James is in general. It's sort of sneaky in that the nn's are farther apart in sounds than nn's for other formal names (ie Kate and Katie and Katherine sound pretty similar, but James/Jamie are different from Jim).
Going off of this idea, what names have the most nicknames? For girls Katherine has a number, but I think the winner may be Margaret, for boys maybe Charles?
Congratulations Prairie Dawn!! Leah Josephine is lovely. She has a great bday too, mine is 4/5 and I've always liked it:)
J&H's Mom- I almost wish I had more to say about Blakesley, but I think we've pretty much covered it. Kind of awkward, going for a boyish nn, etc. Welcome back btw!
Jules- For nn's for Hayden, I love Hayes. Of your suggestions I like Dane the best. The only other one I can think of is Den, like Don or Dan, but unfortunately I think it would be conufused as such. What's his middle name? Sometimes you can do combo names (Like Leah Jo will be) or initials (ala C.J). If you have a fun last name there's lots of things you can do with that too. My friend gets called Wass which is a shortening of his ln.
dexter actually makes me think of a show that used to be on cartoon planet, which is a somewhat less controversial namesake, i think.
jenny l3igh, i would say elizabeth has a lot of nicknames: liz, lizzie, liza, eliza, beth, bess, betty, etc. not sure if it can beat margaret, though.
J&H's mom--i agree that briley is in the same vein as blakesley, but i can't say i'm a big fan of either. it's just not my style, plus i don't think either of them flow very well. i actually know someone who just recently named her daughter bril3e jo. every member of her family has a name that starts with b, with the middle name joe or jo (billy joe, brandi jo, etc). again, not my style for many, many reasons, but to each his own.
jules, hayes is a nice nickname, though i truthfully think hayden is very pleasing on it's own. but i can understand why you'd want a nickname.
J&H's mom-You're welcome! I also thought of you when someone was considering Jack vs. Jackson a thread or 2 back. You might wish to restate your position on that for them if they are still reading.:)
Re Hayden: I agree with emilyrae that its a great name on its own. But I also do understand why it may "need" a nn. I thought of Dayne, Den, Had, and Ned by just rearranging the letters. I like the idea of using mn or ln to get a nn too though. Good luck.
Eo: Thanks for the suggestions! Terence doesn't work for me because our ln has lots of sss sounds, and I dislike the nn Terry (Taran seems short enough to not have a nn). Tennant might be more interesting though! we'll see what dh says about that.
In general, sound alike names don't really link together for me, is anyone else like this? For example, in this thread talking about Dexter and Baxter-- my response is v. different between the two (Baxter pos, Dexter not so much but maybe growing on me). Also similar, a girls name we like is Vienna, but I run in the opposite direction from Sienna! I must not respond so much to sounds, but to associations.
Hayden nn: I concur with Hayes being super cute. Also consider mn options (or just using mn?)
knp, i would say i am at least partially like you regarding associations vs. sounds. like you, i have very different responses to vienna and sienna. and regarding all the -ayden names, they do all sound similar, but some appeal to me much more than others (hayden i like, but kaden i don't like much). i like holly and molly, but not really polly or dolly. so i definitely understand what you're saying. just because a name has similar sounds to a one i already like is by no means a guarantee that it will appeal to me. i generally look more for the overall "feel" of a name.
however i do really like both baxter and dexter. :]
Congratulations Prairie Dawn! Leah Josephine is a beautiful name.
On the boy/girl name topic, I've been wondering how the name Jordan has remained so gender-neutral rather than going completely to the girls? (I realize that Jordyn and Jordin are typically girls.) Any time I see it discussed, the general consensus is that if you just saw the name, you wouldn't automatically assume girl or boy. The data supports this, as the ranks are pretty even since the 80's, even though prior to that it was an established male name. Are there other names that have taken a similar path? Sorry if this has been discussed before.
Jenny L3igh,
I know of a little boy whose first name is S@xon. He would be four or five now. One of his older sisters is named P!per. Can't remember the other sister's name, but it certainly was not a common name.
Thanks for the suggestions so far. I do like Hayes, although it ends similarly to our last name which might not be a big deal. His middle name is Hunter. I know that's also a trendy/popular name, but I chose it because it honored someone important to me. Our last name starts with a J and I had considered Hay-J at one time, but it didn't seem like an actual name that could be used regularly. I had played around with the Ned/Ed kind of thing, but I don't know if that's too much of a stretch.
I think the names Jesse, Riley, and Reece are still truly gender neutral along the lines of Jordan. It seems though that most of the older names that crossed over at some point do not remain neutral for a long period of time.
Post new comment