Did You Give Your Baby An Ivy League Name?

Wednesday, March 6th, 2013

We all have big dreams for our children – success at work, wonderful friendships, a loving relationship and family. But could our name choices impact our children’s futures negatively, even if we don’t pick an out-there name like Facebook or Moon Unit? Especially if our dreams for our children involve a fancy degree from an Ivy League school?

Well, if you believe Gawker, having the most popular name from the year you were born may make it more likely that you don’t get that slot at Harvard. They compared the list of most popular names from 1994 with the current roster of Yale undergrads, and discovered that there wasn’t a whole lot of overlap. Many of the top baby names, including Ashley, Amber, and Morgan for girls, and Anthony, Brandon, and Kyle, didn’t appear on Yale’s list. But Yale’s list included a bunch of names that are on the current popularity list. We see Sophia, Abigail, and Emma for girls – and Samuel, Benjamin and Charles for boys. (I have to say, I was heartened by the fact that my daughters names, Katharine and Margaret, were both on the Ivy League list.)

Which falls in line with the research showcased in Freakonomics by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner. they showed that there is a definite baby naming trend – the upper classes (those more likely to be able to foot the bill for a Yale education) choose the up-and-coming names. Those names soon start to catch on, and as they reach the peak of popularity, the upper classes move on to a new name.

So if you want to know what could be the next new and up-and-coming names, simply start checking out the rosters of swanky preschools in your area – then place your bets as to what’s on the baby-name horizon.

Image: Graduation cap by Amir Ridhwan/Shutterstock.com

Cool Name of the Week: Jennifer

Monday, February 25th, 2013

I broke my wrist this weekend in karate class, which makes it sound cool…but tripping while sparring, which makes it sound a little less cool. (Though Jennifer Lawrence tripping at the Oscars makes tripping seem cooler, right?) So needless to say, I have had some time this weekend to ruminate about potential cool names of the week. And I’ve picked one that seems ubiquitous, but is on its way onto the endangered name list. Is it too late to save Jennifer? And could Oscar winner (and fellow tripper) Jennifer Lawrence help lead the Jen-aissance?

Nameberry actually posted about what they coined the “Jennifer Jauggernaut” last week, and how Jennifer went from obscurity to the top spot in less than 30 years. Jennifer, along with my name, Lisa, were THE names for Generation X girls, to the point where there are Jennifer support groups online….as if the name was some sort of child abuse.  Which explains why few people are currently naming their kids Jennifer (currently #134 on the the baby name list) or especially, Lisa (#703 on the U.S. lists), and they are picking names like Brooklinne instead. (Because the name HAS to be unique…even if it is just a made-up spelling.)

Jennifer is based on the old name Guinevere, and means “white wave.” It comes with a few potential nicknames, including Jen, Jenna and Jenny. Another variant that’s on the rise is Genevieve, which is currently #232 and climbing.

There’s a whole slew of famous Jennifers for name inspiration…Aniston, Lopez, Lawrence, Garner, Hudson, Love Hewitt, Jones and Connelly.

if you’re thinking of Jennifer, consider an offbeat middle name to freshen it up: Lark, Snow or Belle would be my choices. Or put Jen in the middle and use a short-and-sweet first name, like Zoe, Rose or Maeve.

Do you think Jen’s been around the block too often to make it a serious name contender? Would you ever consider a name that was hot when you were a kid, like Lisa, Jessica, Jason, or Mike?

Oh, and congrats to my fellow tripper Jennifer Lawrence on her Oscar win!

Photo: Pregnant woman via Ronald Summers/Shutterstock.com

Cool Name of the Week: Adele

Monday, February 11th, 2013

Congrats to Adele, who picked up yet another Grammy yesterday—that makes nine total for her now—for her song “Set Fire to the Rain.” She’s going to be rocking the Oscars with her Bond theme “Skyfall,” and she’s adoring life as a new mom (to a son apparently named Angelo).

I’m thinking she’s going to make her name just as golden as well. Since Adele’s meteoric rise to the top of the charts, her name has become red-hot as well—it rose nearly 300 places between 2010 and 2011, and my guess is that we’ll find it hovering near the top 300 when the next top U.S. names chart hits in early May. So it’s a perfect pick for my cool name of the week.

You might think Adele’s related to Adeline, but it’s actually based on the name Adelaide, and means “noble.” (Not a bad trait for your future daughter.) And though it’s short enough to be nickname-resistant, if you do like the Addy or Ellie nicknames, it’s a fabulous way to reach it.

Adele opted to become a one-name wonder, like Madonna, Prince and Rihanna, but she actually has two middle names: Laurie and Blue. (Her mother was obviously way ahead of her time!) Of her two middle names, I would have skipped the tamer Laurie and picked beautiful Blue for her middle name.

If you aren’t keen on following too closely in the “Rolling in the Deep” singer’s footsteps, Adele’s the kind of name that can suit a variety of middle names. I like the floral names for a middle name pairing with this classic moniker: Violet, Rose, or Dahlia would all make beautiful choices with Adele. If you like some of the more classic middle names, Jane or Caroline would have a nice flow coming after Adele.

Is Adele on your short list? And do you know any baby Adeles who were born recently? Don’t forget to like In Name Only on Facebook to keep up with the latest baby naming news.

Photo: Pregnant woman via Ronald Summers/Shutterstock.com

Cool Name of the Week: Martin

Monday, January 21st, 2013

What other choice would there be for today? My girls have spent a lot of time over the last few days talking with me about why Martin Luther King is so important—a talk which brought us to all kinds of injustices that people have fought against and won, from the right to vote here to equality for everyone. We’ve even done some research to find out how they would have been treated back then, as people of Chinese descent, if they were in the South—and it turns out, in some places, they would have had to sit in the back of the bus and use “colored” water fountains and schools. I’m feeling very fortunate today for Martin Luther King’s influence.

Martin is a Latin name that means “warlike,” which makes sense considering how fiercely he battled for equal rights (of course, he didn’t actually use violence to make his points, so he was a more peaceful kind of warrior). Paired with his middle name, Luther, MLK’s name is a homage to the creator of Protestantism, one of the other most famous Martins. It’s a name that’s been used for past presidents (Martin Van Buren), actors (Martin Sheen, Martin Lawrence and Martin Short), and of course, a director (that’s Scorsese).

Martin hovered near the top spot for centuries, but recently started a minor decline this century (it’s number 262 in the U.S. right now). But in other countries—particularly in Europe—it’s still in the top slots.

As a shorter name, Martin can pair well with either short or long middle names, depending on the length of the surname. I like it with Theodore and Jackson, or with short names like Charles and Grant.

What do you think of Martin as a boy’s name? Would it be one you’d pick for your son? If you need help picking out a baby name for your son or daughter, don’t forget to e-mail me at lamilbrand@gmail.com.

Photo: Pregnant woman via Ronald Summers/Shutterstock.com

Celebrity Baby Names: Elton John’s New Son

Wednesday, January 16th, 2013

Elton John has a brand new addition to his family—his new son, Elijah Joseph Daniel. Elijah’s the second son of Elton and his partner, David Furnish—he joins his big brother, Zachary Jackson Levon.

Elton and David stacked up a bunch of Biblical names for their new son. Elijah is a pretty popular name—currently #13 in popularity here in the U.S., and it’s a Biblical name that means “Jehovah is God.” Its most famous namesake, besides the Biblical reference, is actor Elijah Wood, who portrayed the Hobbit Frodo Baggins in the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Joseph, currently #22 on the most popular names list, also has a God-like meaning—”Jehovah increases.” And the second middle name, Daniel, is currently in the top 10 names, and means “God is my judge.” There’s a whole slew of celebs with Joseph and Daniel as their names, including writer Joseph Heller and Vice President Joseph “Joe” Biden, and actors Daniel Craig, Daniel Day Lewis and Daniel Radcliffe.

Elton and David buck the celebrity trend of giving their sons out-there baby names—all of their sons’ names (with the exception of Levon) are in the top 100 baby names. But the second middle names, Levon and Daniel, actually have a special meaning for the parents—they’re the names of two of Elton’s top hits from the 70s. (I wonder if he sings them as lullabies to the boys!) Both names flow nicely, and share the same middle initial, J.

What do you think of Elton’s naming choices? Are you disappointed when stars pick standard names for their kids, or are you glad when they’re not saddled with monikers like Moxie Crimefighter or Pilot Inspektor?

Don’t forget to like In Name Only on Facebook, to keep up with the latest baby-naming dish!!!

Photo: Elton John by s_bukley / Shutterstock.com