Archive for the 'Baby Name Suggestions & Lists' Category

Name Your Baby Like a Celebrity : DAVID & VICTORIA BECKHAM

Published

on June 27, 2011

in Baby Name Suggestions & Lists, Baby Names in the News, Celebrity Baby Names, Celebrity Birth, Celebrity Pregnancy and baby name trends

. 0 Comments

THE BECKHAMS

Everyone (me especially!) is eagerly awaiting the birth of David and Victoria Beckham’s fourth child. They were very creative with the names of their first three — Brooklyn, Romeo & Cruz — so you know that whatever they choose will be unique! Reportedly, Author: Vtornet this fourth child is going to be their first girl and their top name choice is Atlanta. What I’ve heard is that Atlanta is a reference to the Atlantic Ocean, which connects the Beckham’s native England and their current home, the United States. Awww… J

NAME YOUR BABY LIKE A CELEBRITY

The name Atlanta may be a little more daring than you want to go, but you can choose a name with a special meaning for you and your family and be as daring or traditional as you want. Ideas are everywhere: · The name of the college where you met · A name that reflects your cultural heritage · The city you lived in when you conceived your baby · The name of the singer who sings “your song” · The name of the person who introduced you · The name on the month you met · The possibilities are endless!

CELEBRITY TRENDSETTERS

What celebs do you think about done the best job choosing baby names? You can email me or leave a comment. When you leave your first comment, you’ll need to take a couple seconds to “register.” It’s a way to prevent spammers from clogging up comment sections with off-topic advertisements. Once you do register though, you won’t have to worry about it again and can leave all the comments you want.

Happy naming,

♥ Amanda

WANT MORE BABY NAME INFO?

♥Join the free BABY NAMES MADE EASY newsletter list for the latest baby name news and tips from my website

♥Subscribe to the RSS feed so you don’t miss any future baby name posts

GET YOUR OWN COPY OF BABY NAMES MADE EASY

HAVE BABY NAME QUESTIONS?

If you have baby name questions, email me at amanda@amandabarden.com.

Your question might appear in a future edition of Ask Amanda.

DO YOU TWEET?

Follow me on TWITTER to get up-to-the-minute celebrity baby name news, interesting names I come across and so much more! I’m @amandaebarden!

For more information on baby names and their meanings get your copy of

BABY NAMES MADE EASY: THE COMPLETE REVERSE-DICTIONARY OF BABY NAMES

Baby Names with Vintage Charm from 1911

Published

Amanda Barden

on June 14, 2011

in Baby Name Suggestions & Lists

. 2 Comments

VINTAGE CHARM

Do you like your baby names with a little vintage charm? I always think that looking back to what was popular 100 years ago is a fun source of cute picks. How about these from the Top 200 in 1911:

GIRLS’ BABY NAMES

BEATRICE

CLARA

CLEO

CORA

DAISY

FRANCES

GENEVA

GENEVIEVE

GEORGIA

MAE

MINNIE

NAOMI

NORA

OLIVE

OPAL

PEARL

VERA

VIOLA

BOYS’ BABY NAMES

AMOS

ARCHIE

CALVIN

EVERETT

FELIX

GILBERT

GRADY

HENRY

LEO

LOUIS

MACK

OSCAR

OTIS

THEODORE

VINTAGE OR MODERN?

Do you prefer old-fashioned names or modern ones? You can email me or leave a comment. When you leave your first comment, you’ll need to take a couple seconds to “register.” It’s a way to prevent spammers from clogging up comment sections with off-topic advertisements. Once you do register though, you won’t have to worry about it again and can leave all the comments you want.

Happy naming,

♥ Amanda

WANT MORE BABY NAME INFO?

♥Join the free BABY NAMES MADE EASY newsletter list for the latest baby name news and tips from my website

♥Subscribe to the RSS feed so you don’t miss any future baby name posts

GET YOUR OWN COPY OF BABY NAMES MADE EASY

HAVE BABY NAME QUESTIONS?

If you have baby name questions, email me at amanda@amandabarden.com.

Your question might appear in a future edition of Ask Amanda.

DO YOU TWEET?

Follow me on TWITTER to get up-to-the-minute celebrity baby name news, interesting names I come across and so much more! I’m @babynameauthor!

For more information on baby names and their meanings get your copy of

BABY NAMES MADE EASY: THE COMPLETE REVERSE-DICTIONARY OF BABY NAMES

Top Names for Twins in 2010

Published

Amanda Barden

on June 7, 2011

in Baby Name Suggestions & Lists and baby name trends

. 0 Comments

TWO BUNDLES OF JOY

Are you expecting two bundles of joy? Then whether you like popular names or want to steer clear of them, you should know what the top names were for twin sets in 2010.

Here are the Top 5 pairings for each combination:

GIRL TWIN SETS

ELLA and EMMA
OLIVIA and SOPHIA
GABRIELLA and ISABELLA
FAITH and HOPE
AVA and EMMA

BOY TWIN SETS

JACOB and JOSHUA
ETHAN and EVAN
JAYDEN and JORDAN
DANIEL and DAVID
MATTHEW and MICHAEL

BOY /GIRL TWIN SETS

MADISON and MASON
EMMA and ETHAN
TAYLOR and TYLER
MADISON and MICHAEL
JAYDA and JAYDEN

It’s interesting that the top picks for boy twin sets and boy/girl twin sets all feature names with the same first letter. Only one of the top five for girl twin sets features names that start with the same letter. This goes along with the general rule that parents tend to be more creative when naming girls.

MY FAVES
Some of my favorite pairings from farther down the lists are:
ZOE and ZACHARY

EMMA and JACK
LILLY and LOGAN
ELIZABETH and WILLIAM
BENJAMIN and WILLIAM
CHRISTOPHER and NICHOLAS
EMMA and RYAN
NAOMI and NOAH

DOUBLE TROUBLE
There are some pairings with a potential for trouble…If you call for one of these kids, both will come running because the names sound so similar:
JADA and JADE
OLIVIA and OLIVER
CHLOE and ZOE
KAYLA and KYLIE
MIA and MYA
AIDEN and ETHAN
JAYDEN and KAYDEN
TAYLOR and TYLER
JAYDA and JAYDEN & JADA and JADEN

SOURCE: http://www.socialsecurity.gov/OACT/babynames/twins.html

SHARE YOUR TWIN STORIES
Do you have any good twin name stories? You can email me or leave a comment. When you leave your first comment, you’ll need to take a couple seconds to “register.” It’s a way to prevent spammers from clogging up comment sections with off-topic advertisements. Once you do register though, you won’t have to worry about it again and can leave all the comments you want.

Happy naming,

♥ Amanda

WANT MORE BABY NAME INFO?

♥Join the free BABY NAMES MADE EASY newsletter list for the latest baby name news and tips from my website

♥Subscribe to the RSS feed so you don’t miss any future baby name posts

GET YOUR OWN COPY OF BABY NAMES MADE EASY

HAVE BABY NAME QUESTIONS?

If you have baby name questions, email me at amanda@amandabarden.com.

Your question might appear in a future edition of Ask Amanda.

DO YOU TWEET?

Follow me on TWITTER to get up-to-the-minute celebrity baby name news, interesting names I come across and so much more! I’m @babynameauthor!

For more information on baby names and their meanings get your copy of

BABY NAMES MADE EASY: THE COMPLETE REVERSE-DICTIONARY OF BABY NAMES

10 Up & Coming Names That Aren’t Trendy Yet

Published

Amanda Barden

on June 2, 2011

in Baby Name Suggestions & Lists and baby name trends

. 0 Comments

Rising Stars

Are you looking for cute and cool names that aren’t overly popular yet? Check out my list of names from the recently released Top 1000 from Social Security. These names are on the rise, but haven’t cracked the Top 250 yet.

GIRLS’ BABY NAMES

GIA – #390

ARIA – #356

ELISA – #495

ADELAIDE – #434

GEMMA – #449

BOYS’ BABY NAMES

ENZO – #443

DEXTER – #454

GIDEON – #461

ORION – #466

WALKER – #424

What Do You Think?

You can email me or leave a comment. When you leave your first comment, you’ll need to take a couple seconds to “register.” It’s a way to prevent spammers from clogging up comment sections with off-topic advertisements. Once you do register though, you won’t have to worry about it again and can leave all the comments you want.

Happy naming,

♥ Amanda

WANT MORE BABY NAME INFO?

♥Join the free BABY NAMES MADE EASY newsletter list for the latest baby name news and tips from my website

♥Subscribe to the RSS feed so you don’t miss any future baby name posts

GET YOUR OWN COPY OF BABY NAMES MADE EASY

HAVE BABY NAME QUESTIONS?

If you have baby name questions, email me at amanda@amandabarden.com.

Your question might appear in a future edition of Ask Amanda.

DO YOU TWEET?

Follow me on TWITTER to get up-to-the-minute celebrity baby name news, interesting names I come across and so much more! I’m @amandaebarden!

For more information on baby names and their meanings get your copy of

BABY NAMES MADE EASY: THE COMPLETE REVERSE-DICTIONARY OF BABY NAMES

Amy Adams & Birthplace Baby Names

Published

Amanda Barden

on December 24, 2010

in Baby Name Suggestions & Lists and Celebrity Baby Names

. 2 Comments

Aviano, Italy becomes Aviana

Apparently, Amy Adams was born in Italy. Aviano, Italy, to be exact. Which is how Amy came up with the sweet name Aviana for her daughter. Amy and partner Darren Le Gallo had originally been set on more traditional names, but kept coming back to the very unique name Aviana Olea. by Chrisa Hickey

Geography-inspired names have been trendy for awhile. There are several different geographical inspirations – fave vacation spot, honeymoon local, place of conception. Now we can add parent’s birthplace to the list.

What do you think about naming a baby after your birthplace? I would say it probably depends on where you were born. I was born in a little place called Walnut Creek. It’s a very cute name for a town, but I’m not sure that it has the makings of a good baby name. A little girl named Walnut? A baby boy named Creek? I don’t think so. If I’d been born in Aviano, Italy, it might be a different story though.

You can read more about Amy’s name choice here.

Birthplace Baby Names?

Would you name a baby after the city where you were born? You can email me or leave a comment. When you leave your first comment, you’ll need to take a couple seconds to “register.” It’s a way to prevent spammers from clogging up comment sections with off-topic advertisements. Once you do register though, you won’t have to worry about it again and can leave all the comments you want.

Happy naming,

♥ Amanda

Baby Name Advice from a Dad

Published

Amanda Barden

on December 16, 2010

in Baby Name Suggestions & Lists and Baby Naming Tips

. 1 Comment

A New Baby Naming Tradition

A lot of parents-to-be I’ve spoken with have told me that they don’t want to follow the tradition of naming their first born son after dad. A few say it’s because they’re not crazy about dad’s name (I’m not sure if the dads know this or not), but most say they don’t like the tradition because they want their son to have a name that’s all his own. No more of this 00289917 living in dad’s shadow – or even great, great granddad’s shadow.

Sounds like a plan. The trouble is that a lot of these parents really love the idea of carrying on a family name tradition. Quite a quandary.

Here’s a baby naming tip from a dad I met at a baby fair a couple months ago. Since most of my interactions are with moms, it’s always a treat to hear from the dads. And this dad had some great advice…Instead of using the same first name, he told me that in his family, the fathers and sons share the same monogram—CMC. He said it’s great because everyone has a unique name, but they also share a cool family connection. I thought this was great advice!

Ditch Junior or Keep Him?

What do you think about Juniors? Is it a great tradition or outdated? You can email me or leave a comment. When you leave your first comment, you’ll need to take a couple seconds to “register.” It’s a way to prevent spammers from clogging up comment sections with off-topic advertisements. Once you do register though, you won’t have to worry about it again and can leave all the comments you want.

Happy naming,

♥ Amanda

5 Reason Why the Name Orion Should be More Popular

Published

Amanda Barden

on December 10, 2010

in Baby Name Conversation, Baby Name Suggestions & Lists and Celebrity Baby Names

. 5 Comments

I Love the Name Orion

I’ve always loved the name Orion and am constantly surprised that it isn’t more popular. I’ll admit that the cool kid in my elementary school named Orion may have colored my view of the name initially, but that was years ago…I have 5 timely reasons why more parents should consider the name:

723px-orion_constellation_hevelius

1. Orion has never been a trendy baby name

Parents I talk to are often looking for a name with that perfect balance of familiar, but not too common. Orion fits the bill. Everyone’s heard the name, but not everyone knows an Orion. In fact, the highest Orion has ever ranked on the Social Security charts is in the 500s.

2. Orion is similar to a longtime favorite, but with a twist

The name Ryan has been popular for ages. Orion has a very similar sound, but is a dash more interesting because it’s more unique. That’s saying a lot coming from me because Ryan has always been one of my favorite names—but it’s been the favorite of a lot of other people, too, which is why it might be time to give Orion a chance.

3. Orion has that cool “O” initial

Parents love names with cool initials. “J” and “A” are among the most popular initials these days, but a lot of cool names start with “O,” too. Granted, nowhere near as many names as either “J” or “A,” but there are a few popular ones – Olivia, Owen, Oliver, Oscar, Orlando and Olive. I really think Orion should be on that list.

4. Orion has a cool history

I love that Orion is the name of a popular constellation. Even if you’re not an astronomy buff, this is pretty cool. Plus, it’s one of the few constellations that most people can identify on sight. Names with cool histories are interesting.

5. Mr. Big named his son Orion

In 2009, Chris Noth used Orion for his son. Like it or not, there’s nothing like a celebrity endorsement to add some swagger to a name.

So why isn’t the name Orion more popular? You tell me.

What do you think about Orion?

Happy naming,

♥ Amanda

WANT MORE BABY NAME INFO?

♥Join the free BABY NAMES MADE EASY newsletter list for the latest baby name news and tips from my website

♥Subscribe to the RSS feed so you don’t miss any future baby name posts

GET YOUR OWN COPY OF BABY NAMES MADE EASY

HAVE BABY NAME QUESTIONS?

If you have baby name questions, email me at amanda@amandabarden.com.

Your question might appear in a future edition of Ask Amanda.

DO YOU TWEET?

Follow me on TWITTER to get up-to-the-minute celebrity baby name news, interesting names I come across and so much more! I’m @babynameauthor!

For more information on baby names and their meanings get your copy of

BABY NAMES MADE EASY: THE COMPLETE REVERSE-DICTIONARY OF BABY NAMES

Quirky Baby Names

Published

Amanda Barden

on December 8, 2010

in Baby Name Suggestions & Lists

. 0 Comments

Stepping Outside the Baby Name Box

I was at the dentist the other day and one of the people scheduled after me was named Pepper. Pepper! I’m a name collector (obviously) so I absolutely love to come across real life quirky names like Pepper.

00438483

Curious names like Pepper certainly aren’t for everyone and I could come up with a long list of why off-beat names can pose a problem for kids. But that’s not what this blog post is about. This post is a celebration of unusual names! Plus, some people really love them. What’s more, some people really pull them off well. It might be a chicken and the egg thing. Regardless, I think they’re worth some serious consideration (at least every now and then).

I didn’t get a chance to learn the story behind Pepper’s name, but I do have a good name story for you. At a book signing not long ago, a couple told me they had the name Pippi picked out. As in Pippi Longstocking. It turns out that Pippi Longstocking was a childhood hero of one of the parents and when they needed a name for a daughter, Pippi was it. Not everyone’s cup of tea, but I’d venture to guess that some people will think it’s cute and fun. Plus, she’ll be the only Pippi in her class.

Quirky Baby Names

Here’s a list of some truly quirky baby names:

GIRLS’ BABY NAMES

BABY

BEAUTY

BIRD / BIRDIE

CRICKET

CUPCAKE

DOLLY

FLICKA

KITTY

MERRY

PEPPER

PIPPI

BOYS’ BABY NAMES

BEAR

BUDDY

BUSTER

FOX

HAPPY

JUNIOR

LUCKY

SCORPIO

I have no idea why so many of these names start with the letter B…

What’s Your Favorite Unusual Baby Name?

I would love to collect a few more unique names. Email me your stories or leave a comment. When you leave your first comment, you’ll need to take a couple seconds to “register.” It’s a way to prevent spammers from clogging up comment sections with off-topic advertisements. Once you do register though, you won’t have to worry about it again and can leave all the comments you want J

Happy naming,

♥ Amanda

GET YOUR OWN COPY OF BABY NAMES MADE EASY

DO YOU TWEET?

Follow me on TWITTER to get up-to-the-minute celebrity baby name news, interesting names I come across and so much more! I’m @babynameauthor!

For more information on baby names and their meanings get your copy of

BABY NAMES MADE EASY: THE COMPLETE REVERSE-DICTIONARY OF BABY NAMES

Check out my Etsy Shop

Flower Power: How do flower names rank?

Published

Amanda Barden

on November 2, 2010

in Baby Name Suggestions & Lists and baby name trends

. 2 Comments

LOVELY LILA

At my last book signing event (the East Bay Birth & Baby Fair), a new mom told me she’d named her daughter Lila because she loved flower names – one of Lila’s definitions is “lilac.” She was curious (and a little worried) about how popular Lila is with other parents. I love flower names, too, so I thought I’d put together a list of the flower names in the current Top 1000 and check on Lila’s popularity.

FLOWER POWER

Here are the names and rankings:

#18 –	LILY (also ranked: Lilly and Lillie)
#27 –	LILLIAN (also ranked: Lilia, Lilian, Liliana, Lilianna, Lillianna and Lilyana)
#46 –	LAUREN (also ranked: Lauryn)
#51 –	JASMINE (also ranked: Jasmin, Jazmin, Jazmine, Yasmin and Yasmine)
#141 –	VIOLET
#153 –	DAISY
#168 –	LILA (also ranked: Lilah)
#235 –	LAURA
#264 –	LEILANI
#317 –	IRIS
#352 –	ROSE (also ranked: Rosa)
#396 –	SAGE (also ranked: Saige)
#476 –	DAPHNE
#500 –	ZARIAH (also ranked: Zaria)
#558 –	HEATHER
#660 –	DAHLIA (also ranked: Dalia)
#721 –	ROSEMARY
#763 –	SUSAN
#776 –	ZARA
#838 –	HANA
#936 –	LORENA

	Source: Social Security

WHAT’S THE VERDICT?

So, how did Lila’s mom do? She did pretty well. She was hoping there weren’t too many other Lilas out there and there aren’t tons. It ranks in the mid-100s. I can see it getting more popular in the next few years though. Especially as similar sounding names like Lily and Lillian continue to gain ground.

A FIELD OF CHOICES

Here are some pretty unranked flower names that are worth a look:

JESENIA – so lovely!

KAMALA

LAVENDER

LILAC – one of my faves! So pretty and unique.

MAGNOLIA

MARIGOLD

OLIANA

POPPY – very British

POSY

Still looking for more floral beauties? I have a whole chapter full of them – Flowers, Trees & Things That Grow.

TAKE YOUR PICK

What are your favorite flower names? You can email me or leave a comment. When you leave your first comment, you’ll need to take a couple seconds to “register.” It’s a way to prevent spammers from clogging up comment sections with off-topic advertisements. Once you do register though, you won’t have to worry about it again and can leave all the comments you want.

Happy naming,

♥ Amanda

WANT MORE BABY NAME INFO?

♥Join the free BABY NAMES MADE EASY newsletter list for the latest baby name news and tips from my website

♥Subscribe to the RSS feed so you don’t miss any future baby name posts

GET YOUR OWN COPY OF BABY NAMES MADE EASY

HAVE BABY NAME QUESTIONS?

If you have baby name questions, email me at amanda@amandabarden.com.

Your question might appear in a future edition of Ask Amanda.

DO YOU TWEET?

Follow me on TWITTER to get up-to-the-minute celebrity baby name news, interesting names I come across and so much more! I’m @babynameauthor!

For more information on baby names and their meanings get your copy of

BABY NAMES MADE EASY: THE COMPLETE REVERSE-DICTIONARY OF BABY NAMES

The Family Jewels

Published

Amanda Barden

on October 26, 2010

in Baby Name Suggestions & Lists

. 1 Comment

GEMS FROM YOUR FAMILY TREE

One of the best places for baby name inspiration is your family tree. Not only does choosing a name from your roots create a nice family connection, but there are some really interesting names popular in years gone past. It’s likely you’re not inspired by the Sharons, Marys, Larrys and Ronalds common in the current grandparent set. But go back another generation or two and you may just find a hidden gem you fall in love with.

00308996

NO FAMILY TREE, NO PROBLEM

Don’t have access to a large family tree? Or do you just not like what you find there? Don’t fret. Social Security to the rescue! The Social Security website is one of my favorite name research tools. They publish lists of popular names by year. I went back 100 years and found some cool names from the Top 500:

GIRLS’ BABY NAMES

BEATRICE

CLEMENTINE

CORA

CORDELIA

DAISY

DIXIE

ESTELLA

ETTA

EUGENIA

EVANGELINE

FERN

FRANCES

GARNET

GENEVA

GENEVIEVE

GEORGIA

HAZEL

ILA – one of my faves!

IVY

JOSEPHINE

LYDIA

MAE

MAGNOLIA

MAYBELLE

MINERVA

MINNIE

NADINE

NAOMI

NEVA

NORA

OLIVE

OPAL

PEARL

PRISCILLA

RAMONA

ROSALIE

ROSELLA

STELLA

VIOLA

VIVIAN

WILLA

BOYS’ BABY NAMES

ALONZO

AMOS

ARCHIE

BOOKER

BUSTER

DOYLE

EVERETT

FELIX

GRADY

GROVER

HARLEY

HARRISON

HARVEY

HENRY

HOLLIS

ISAAC

JASPER

LEO

LEVI

LORENZO

LOUIS

MACK

MONROE

MOSE

OSCAR

OTIS

OTTO

REX

ROCCO

ROSCOE

SIMON

THEODORE

VAN

WILEY

WILLIS

WILSON

SURPRISING FINDS

While going through the Top 500 from 1910, I found some surprising names on the list. Mary was #238…on the boy’s list! Other names that are typically used for girl’s today that also made the boy’s list were Cleo, Clair, Dee, Ruth, Sandy, Ethel and Lacy. Also on the list were King, Major, Sterling, Noble, Prince, Judge, Junior, General and Royal. The most unexpected of all (other than Mary) … Lucious!

Some of the interesting picks from the girl’s list were Willie, Goldie, Effie, Ollie, Johnnie, Lessie, Birdie, Dessie, Frankie, Billie, Merle, Cecil, Jimmie, Eddie, Dovie, Artie, Mittie, Georgie, Floy, Era, Tommie, Robbie, Easter, Lovie and …. John!

I wonder if there was a family with a son named Mary and a daughter named John…

Happy naming,

♥ Amanda

WANT MORE BABY NAME INFO?

♥Join the free BABY NAMES MADE EASY newsletter list for the latest baby name news and tips from my website

♥Subscribe to the RSS feed so you don’t miss any future baby name posts