Guest blogger Elizabeth Lindsay, aka nameberry’s very own Olivekit, was wracked with indecision over what to name her third baby girl — a dilemma followed closely by all her friends on nameberry’s message boards.  The final name choice surprised everyone, even Olivekit herself. 　　Baby Ooh La La (what my two-and-a-half-year-old...

　　This blog is adapted from our most recent book, Beyond Ava & Aiden: The Enlightened Guide to Naming Your Baby 　　When people look for baby names online, they often put in a search for unique names. Some of them are trying to find names that are unusual and distinctive, but...

　　What are the most popular girls’ names in the U.S.?  If you consult the official Social Security list, or most of the state lists, you’ll get one version.  With each name counted individually by spelling — Sophia and Sofia are counted separately, in other words — the national list of...

　　When a name gets popular, it’s rarely in isolation. 　　Both boy names and girl names tend to rise and fall in groups based on sound, image, association, or some combination thereof. Sometimes just a pair of names will attract attention, but often entire gangs of names will become fashionable at...

　　Strong boy names are a powerful trend right now, as parents increasingly turn to names with positive meanings of strength and resilience in troubling times. 　　Strong boy names include those that literally mean strength, power or might – from popular classics like Ethan and Ezekiel, to rare and unique choices...

　　European baby names have a long and illustrious history of use in the US. After all, many of the most popular boy names today – contemporary classics like Leo and Lucas, Mason and Mateo, Oliver and Owen – have European origins. 　　But there is so much cultural and linguistic variety...

　　Unisex nature names blend two of the coolest categories of baby names right now, so it’s no wonder they’re attracting a lot of attention! 　　The top gender neutral names in the US include several nature-inspired options, and the natural world is also a wonderful place to look for unique unisex...

　　The great thing is that the pool of surnames is so large — and ever more diverse — that there are always more to discover. 　　Sure, they don’t all make good first names. I know families called Beer, Small and Bumstead, but I doubt any babies will get those as...

　　Alanna Shore, stay-at-home parent, and her husband Keith, artist and art director of Mikkeller Beer, live in Bucks County, Pennsylvania with their four children. 　　In May they welcomed their latest arrivals, twins named Nico Gianna and Jasper Graham. Here, Alanna shares the story of how she and Keith named their...

　　The biggest critic of parents’ baby name choice? Yup, that would be Grandma! 　　According to a 2016 survey, almost half of new parents who received negative comments about their newborn’s name said that they came from their own mom. 　　Whether you’re surprised or totally unsurprised by that statistic – no...

　　So long, Junior! Creative family names are a major modern name trend, replacing Jrs and IIIs on the birth certificate. 　　Two years ago, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle named their daughter Lilibet Diana, honoring two of the most important women in Harry’s family. Lilibet pays homage to Harry's grandmother, Queen...

　　Can the rise of ancient names for babies be credited to the prominence of Amelia, Zoe, Sebastian, and Atticus on international lists of popular names? 　　Or maybe it’s a reaction against all the new names and trends that have mushroomed over the past few decades, from word names to nature...

　　By Kelli Brady, The Name Freak! 　　For a second year, I present the “real” Top 50 by combining the different spellings of each name. Because when you hear “Jacob!” on the playground, you have no idea how his name is spelled, but you know you hear the name a lot....

　　By Eleanor Nickerson, British Baby Names 　　It’s official! The number 1 names in 2013 for England and Wales were Amelia, for the third year running, and Oliver, last at #1 in 2010. Steep climbers Ava and Isla both made it to the Top 5 and Oscar and Poppy were in the Top 10 for...

　　By Arika Okrent 　　Arika Okrent is editor-at-large at [_TheWeek.com](http://theweek.com/article/index/251655/the-least-popular-american-baby-names-from-1880-to-1932) and a frequent contributor to Mental Floss. She is the author of In the Land of Invented Languages, a history of the attempt to build a better language. She holds a doctorate in linguistics and a first-level certification in Klingon. Thanks to Arika for permission to reprint this...

　　Rainbow baby names — names for a child born after the loss of another — can be a way to mark a time of mixed emotions. Some parents find it helpful and meaningful to choose a name that both acknowledges the loss and celebrates new life, commemorating the past and...

　　When I was a waitress, we had a trick to help indecisive customers make up their minds about what they wanted to eat. 　　If it was the main course that had them stumped, we asked, “Meat or fish?” 　　And if it was dessert, the question was “Fruit or chocolate?” 　　Now,...

　　Since parents today invest so much thought and effort into finding the right name for their child, we get a lot of queries asking for advice on what to name the baby, and we do try to accentuate the positive. 　　But we also find it incumbent upon us to point...