Middle Name Statistics

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Middle names are something we all like to talk about, but unfortunately, the Social Security Administration doesn't record middle names of babies, only first names. So you can imagine how thrilled I was when I saw that my high school graduation program included most peoples' middle names--this offered me a set of data. Now, my high school only graduated 736 people, and some don't have middle names, or didn't want it to be listed in the program. However, my area is extremely diverse--racially, socio-economically, and religiously--so the small set of data I do have is still worth anaylzing. So, here's the data for the most common middle names among the Class of 2015 ('96 and '97 babies).

Girls
1. Marie (15)
2. Elizabeth (14) and Elisabeth (1)
3. Ann (4) and Anne (5)
4. Nicole (7) and Nykole (1)
5. Rose (8)
6. Grace (5)
7. Lee (2) and Leigh (3)
8. Jean (3) and Jeanne (1)
9. Louise (4)
10. Lynn (3) and Lynee (1)

Notable Trends

• Alex- Names: Alexandra, Alexandria, Alexis (2)
• An- Names: Analiese, Angelin, Anna, Ann (4), Anne (5), Annie
• -Ay Names: Kay, May, Monet, Rae, (2), Shae
• El- Names: Elaine, Elena, Elisabeth, Elizabeth (14), Ella, Eloise, Elvira
• Esme Names: Esme (2), Esmeralda
• Iman- Names: Iman (2), Imani
• La- Names: Lanae (2), Lan'Yel, Larae, Lashae, Lashay, Latasha, Latefah, Latoya
• Heritage Choices: Abu, Fatima, Fionnuala, Guadalupe, Inez, Keiko, Ondina, Roisin
• Only two: Claire, Catherine/Katherine, Mary

Gems

• Bartholomew
• Bean
• Beata
• Chiffon
• Elvira
• Hopes
• Houston
• Love
• Magaly
• Saffia
• Salome

Boys
1. James (10)
2. Edward (7)
3. William (7)
4. Charles (6)
5. Thomas (6)
6. Joseph (5)
7. Michael (4) and Micael (1)
8. Anthony (4)
9. David (4)
10. John (4)
11. Patrick (4)

Notable Trends

• Al Names: Alan, Alexander (3), Allen
• Ed- Names: Edmond, Eduardo, Edward (7), Edwin
• Mark Names: Marcus, Markus (2)
• Zach: Zachary (2), Zachery
• Brit Picks: Basil, Edmond, George, Phillip (2), Sinclair, Tucker (2)
• Heritage Choices: Angel, Azriel, Enahoro, Hong, Mitja, Sohail
• Only two: Lee, Matthew, Peter, Robert

Gems

• Aksel
• Basil
• Jewel
• Kirby
• Moss
• Sinclair
• Soliman
• Winter
• Wolfgang

*I'm taking next week off for the holiday. Sorry for the infrequent posting--this has been a busy summer for me!*

10 A Names You Never Thought of Using: Boys

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Last week we talked about unusual A names for girls, and now it's time for the boys. The boys names in this series will be slightly different than the girls. Due to the lack of variety of boys names, some of the ones listed are in the top 1000. However, they are all below 500. Take a look, and tell me if you'd consider any of them for your own child.


Alaric- Alaric sounds cool, calm, and collected, traits you might want to give to a son.

Alban- Has that popular -an ending. Spell it Alben, and he's another way to get to Ben.

Ansel- I was inspired by my ACT passage on Ansel Adams to put this one on the list. It sounds slightly feminine, but there's an obvious connection, so he wouldn't get confused for a girl.

Anton- Joanna Goddard's baby is named Anton, and it wears very well. I wasn't too keen on it before, but seeing it on an actual baby made me see how useable Anton is.

Argo- Yeah, there's the movie, but Argo would make a fun name for a son. I would wait a few years, until people forget about the movie's catchphrase though.

Arlo- Arlo is Argo's softer, safer cousin. Plus, he fits in with rising names like Marlowe and Harlow.

Asa- Actor Asa Butterfield brought his name back into the spotlight. Even so, some people will think it's a girl name, a la Ava and Ana.

Axton- There's Paxton, Maxton, Braxton, and Jaxton, why not Axton? He's not my favorite name in the world, but he's a good option for parents looking for a name that's unique with trendy sounds.

Aza- Spices up Asa.

Azriel- This Hebrew name is a cool alternative to the overused Gabriel.