These 100+ Names Defined the Decade

Nov 21, 2024 7:25 PM

　　At the end of not just a year but an entire decade, The New York Times asked Nameberry to name the names that defined the adolescence of the 21st century.

　　To find out, we analyzed the names that appear on the list of most popular baby names 2020 that did not rank among the Top 1000 a decade ago.

　　The result was more than 500 names that we organized into baby name trends that defined the decade of the 2010s. For the complete story, check out what we wrote in The New York Times, but we include here more names that exemplify the major trends exclusively for Nameberry readers.

　　The ultimate message: These are the names that became stylish over the past decade. Many of them might feel overheated by the end of the next.

Rediscovered Vintage Names

We dug another layer deeper to uncover new vintage names in the past decade. New old names in the Top 1000:

Vintage Girl Names

Clementine

　　Eloise

　　Florence

　　Louise

　　Mabel

　　Margot

　　Pearl

　　Thea

　　Vera

　　Willa

Vintage Boy Names

Benedict

　　Clyde

　　Harvey

　　Ira

　　Lionel

　　Lyle

　　Otis

　　Otto

　　Theo

　　Wallace

Contemporary God and Goddess Names

Mythological names — those from legend and ancient religions — have been one of the major trends of the past decade.

Goddess Names

Ariadne

　　Aurelia

　　Calliope

　　Freya

　　Galilea

　　Lilith

　　Maryam

　　Rhea

God Names

Achilles

　　Amos

　　Atlas

　　Augustine

　　Cain

　　Ephraim

　　Jaziel

　　Magnus

　　Marcellus

　　Titan

Unique Celebrity Names

Parents adopted the unusual celebrity names for their children. Some of the top names:

　　 Adele

　　Axl

　　Blake

　　Benicio

　　Celine

　　Colson

　　Demi

　　Elan

　　Liv

　　Idris

　　Maisie

　　Keanu

　　Octavia

　　Kyrie

　　Saoirse

　　Legend

　　Stevie

　　Tatum

　　Sutton

　　Thiago

New Nature Names

Words names of all kinds but especially nature names rose to visibility in the 2010s, including these examples:

　　Azalea

　　Forest

　　Heavenly

　　Fox

　　Ivory

　　Genesis

　　Juniper

　　Major

　　Magnolia

　　Nova

　　Onyx

　　Sky

　　Ridge

　　Sunny

　　Rocky

　　Winter

　　Shepherd

　　Wren

　　Wilder

Unisex Names

New names seem to qualify as gender neutral all the time. These gender neutral names became popular over the past decade for both boys and girls.

　　Azariah

　　Briar

　　Emory

　　Leighton

　　Lennox

　　Milan

　　Nova

　　Oakley

　　Reign

　　Remy

　　Royal

　　Sutton

Diverse International Names

International names entered the US Top 1000 not just from Europe but from around the world. Newly popular in the 2010s are the following:

International Baby Girl Names

Alessia

　　Antonella

　　Astrid

　　Joelle

　　Julieta

　　Noor

　　Rivka

　　Sylvie

　　Veda

　　Vivienne

International Baby Boy Names

Torin

　　Anders

　　Arian

　　Bjorn

　　Bodhi

　　Cristiano

　　Kenzo

　　Khalid

　　Mustafa

　　Tadeo

　　Torin

Previous Article：These Cool Winter Baby Names Are Hot, Hot, Hot! Next Article：Baby Yoda, meet Baby Yara

Comments

Welcome to zdname comments! Please keep conversations courteous and on-topic. To fosterproductive and respectful conversations, you may see comments from our Community Managers.

Show More Comments

Trends & Predictions

The Top Names We're Watching for 2024

Nov 21, 2024

　　Which baby names will be on top in 2024? 　　If we're speaking literally, you can expect to see the same few names on the tippy-top of the charts — Olivia and Emma, Liam and Noah. But it's a lot more fun to look at the fastest-rising names — the choices rapidly...

The Secret Meanings of Color Names

Nov 21, 2024

　　Color names, either flat-out color names like Blue or names with colorful meanings like Aurelia, are more and more popular. 　　But do you know the secret meanings behind the color behind that name you love? 　　Color-related meanings are drawn from a wide range of cultures and are often even older...

Babyberries: Class of 2023!

Nov 21, 2024

　　As we finish off another year, it's time for the recap of Nameberry's newest arrivals born in 2023! 　　Birth announcements for 93 new Babyberries – 47 girls and 46 boys – were featured on our forums and Instagram over the past year. The warmest of welcomes to all of our littlest members! 　　Berry parents...

Celebrity Baby Name Trends of 2023

Nov 21, 2024

　　And that’s a wrap on the celebrity names of 2023. This year saw a number of notable celebrity baby names, including Techno Mechanicus, Rocky Thirteen, and Louetta Isley. 　　In addition, many A-list celebrity babies were born in 2023, such as the unnamed babies of Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds and...