#Megan debuted in 1922 in the SSA DB. Since then, 57 spellings were added, last being Meghyn in 2009. It is a Welsh pet form of Margaret, but everyone thinks it's Irish because of the character in the 1977 novel & 1983 miniseries "The Thorn Birds" by Colleen McCullough. #babynames #givennames

641 Boys names were added to the SSA database in 2024. there's not enough room for all, so a selection is below. (full list on sheet2 tinyurl.com/yuzvc8ta.) Lahiam was the top debut with 152 babies (+8 Lahyams). Xyleek was #2 with 115 babies (+19 Zyleeks) #babynames #names #unusualnames #boynames

Number names are ejoying popularity now. Seven is the most common, adding multiple spellings in recent years for both sexes. Though we lost Primus and Nyne declined for boys, we added Five and more spellings of Six in 2024! Eleven is still a contender for girls thanks to #strangerthings. #babynames

Oops, I posted the wrong image in the last post. Here are the biggest dropping boys' names from 2023-2024. Poor Darikson! Likewise, people have less love for Nyne, Dj, Khaliq, Levitt, Yamari, Hannan, Ithiel, & Esli. #babynames #boynames #usanames #names #givennames #firstnames #popularnames

The changes in the Boys' 2024 top list for the USA from 2023 are Here: tinyurl.com/yuzvc8ta. The 1st sheet has all the stats 2023/24 & 2nd sheet has the added names & dropouts. Here are some highlights: #names #babynames #boynames #popularnames #usanames

2024 Boys Names grouped by spelling are up! Full list: tinyurl.com/2024boys Top 150 below. Moving up: Arthur, Crew, Bodhi, Enzo, Emiliano, Thiago. Moving down: Mason, Axel, Carson, Aaron, Lincoln, Jameson, Zayden, Jasper, Kai, Hunter, Zion -o is in! -on is out! #babynames #names #boynames #popular

Names that sound related but aren't: #Jesse (boys' name) and Jessie (girls' name). Jesse is an English form of the biblical Hebrew Yishai, meaning "gift" via the Greek form, Iessai. Jessie was originally a Scottish short form of Jean or Janet (tinyurl.com/5xz2vfa8). In the 20th century, it started

Names you didn't know were related: #Jenny & #Jessie. They are known as short for Jennifer & Jessica now, but they are much older. Since medieval times, Jenny was a diminutive of Jane, the common English feminine form of John. Its association with Jennifer didn't come until the 20th century.

Sophia has been the #1 girls' name in the USA since 2007 when it dethroned Emily! Isabella briefly took the top spot in 2009, but Sophia's supremacy is almost old enough to vote! Blog post here: tinyurl.com/469be7ff #babynames #sophia #sofia #names #USAnames #popularnames #girlnames

Here is the top 100 girls' names of 2024 grouped by spelling. The most popular spelling is listed in this chart. The full list is here: tinyurl.com/5n8wewts. Some highlights: #Ailani is up 210 places, #Alana is up 30 places, and #Daisy is up 43 places. #babynames #girlnames #popularnames #names2024

Here are all the girls' names that debuted this year in the SSA database. Some highlights: Chrome, Dreamlynn, Luvlee, Moonie, Triumph, Reazyn, Roscoe, Mauve, Brewer, Valleigh, Knourish, Harmyni, Millerkate, Scottland, Islynd, Truce, Envii, Trulei, Rare, Rizzo, Legendary, Abundance...

The new pope chose the 3rd most common papal name-- #LeoXIV. Yawn. Here are the most common #pope names, as well as the least common. Maybe he should have been Lando II or Hyginus II? #popes #names

Name fun fact! You know the -h on the end of biblical names like Sarah, Hannah, Dinah etc.? It represents an actual silent letter in the original Hebrew spelling (ה). However, sticking it on the end non-Hebrew names is really trendy now (like Norah for example!). #names #babynames #girlnames

#Micaela debuted in the SSA db in 1895. It was not popular until 1992 when it took off thanks to "Dr. Mike" in the series "Dr Quinn, Medicine Woman." Since then, 142 spellings were added in the db, the last, Makaiyla, in 2012. It's the name with the 3rd most spellings in the db. #Makayla soon...

Top 100 names for girls in England & Wales for 2023, grouped by spelling (most used spelling listed here). When grouped by spelling, the top 10 doesn't change much, but farther down, Maya/Maia, Aria/Arya, Sara/h, and esp. Alaya, Amira, & Elena get a boost. Full list here: tinyurl.com/4c9ztad9

Names that sound related but aren't: Olivia, Livia, Liv. Olivia was invented by Shakespeare for the play 12th Night, possibly based on Oliva or Oliver. Livia is a fem. form of Livius, a Roman name meaning perhaps "envy" or "blue". Liv is from Old Norse hlif meaning "protection." #names #babynames

Names you didn't know were related! Clovis, Lewis, & Aloysius. All stem from Ludwig (Germanic, "famous" + "battle") via the Latin form Ludovicus. #names #babynanes #onomastics #boynames

A friend recently named her baby River because she wanted something unisex. Is River a truly unisex name? It's used for both boys and girls, but consistently has been more popular for boys over the years. #names #babynames #river

Most name-derived surnames come from male names, like Davis (David), Anderson (Andrew) etc., but there are a few from female names. Some are both (e.g., Ellery, which can also come from Hilarius/Hilary). Some are from no longer used names , like the Anglo-Saxon Sely meaning "happy". #names #surnames

Names that sound related but aren't: Wayne & Dwayne. Wayne is an English surname meaning "wagon maker." Dwayne started out Duane, an anglicization of the Irish surname Ó Dubhán, from a first name meaning "dark haired." The spelling #Dwayne was influenced in the 20th century by #Wayne. #babynames

Curious about #Christine? Ever wonder if there are more girls named #Christina than #Kristy? How about #Kristin vs. #Kristen? Well wonder no more... here is the complete history of Chris- names in the USA! tinyurl.com/2p9hw3tu #names #babynames #girlnames

Here are all the boys and girls names that debuted in the SSA database in 2023. Some highlights (boys): Nylon, Italy, Zorro, Risen, Trophy (girls):Luxuri, Loveleigh, Khemistri, Kurrency, Illuminada, Trulove, Energy, Kindness, Excellence. #babynames #uniquenames #boynames #girlnames #names

I have grouped the 2023 Girls Names in the USA by spelling. Check out the full list here! tinyurl.com/2023-Girls #babynames #popularnames #names #girlnames #namespelling

I have grouped the top 6000 or so boys names in the USA by spelling. See the Whole list here: tinyurl.com/2023-boys

Namenerds can't get to their X account, so here we are on Blue Sky!