Warning: This is really not finance related today. Unless you can make a connection between your name and possible career potential. That’s a stretch, but seriously how many lawyers have you known with the name of Candy or Roxy? And how many strippers have you known with the name of Mary? Just as a point of reference, there are some articles out there that go into detail about how your name defines you. Your name does influence your future.
From Jennifer to Jason or Isabelle to Max, names go through cyclical periods of popularity. Old names become new again and unique ones becomes obsolete and disappear from baby books.
I came across this interactive infographic of number one most popular girl’s baby names state by state, decade by decade, and thought it would make for an interesting topic. My name dominated the map for almost 15-years (I guess my parents just weren’t that creative!) but then disappeared. The map only tracks number one names by state, so I’m sure my name is still used today somewhere, but the fact that it dominated for so long burned people out, I’m sure. This map also doesn’t track number two or three names, such as Katie, Sarah, or Elizabeth, so don’t feel bad if your name doesn’t appear. As for the boys, we’ll have to wait and see if they make a similar map. My guess is that more traditional names dominate year over year.
Is your name on the map?
6 Comments
I saw this last week and was fascinated by it! My name was the number 1 name in Utah way, way back in the 60’s. Haha
@Julie – It’s interesting how the map shows which names were popular in the different states at certain times. I really thought Hannah would dominate the early 2000’s, but it only appeared in a handful of states at that time.
It’s funny how some names are big for a time and then vanish. When is the last time that you’ve seen a baby named Shirley or Ethel?
@Edward – You’re right. Some very popular names from decades ago have vanished, while others that may not have been quite as popular have made a come back like Sophia, Emily, Hannah, and Emma.
I’d have to guess that the male version would probably not be as interesting since Michael would probably dominate throughout. Which is just fine, as it’s a wonderful name. Signed, Michael (Money Beagle)
@Money Beagle – You’re probably right. I’m guessing it’d be a toss up between Michael, Jonathan, and Robert. (P.S. If you hadn’t guessed, my very popular name is Jennifer) 🙂