Stolen from CEP: Social Security’s Most Popular Baby Names

[munkii]

(Social Security’s Most Popular Baby Names 2012)

I don't know whether I'm pleased or saddened that my name only made it into the top 1,000 (that's right, one thousand) in 1987 and has never made it past 888--to be fair, the spelling is the anglicized version. The original spelling has been much more popular but still has not passed 138 (and that was in 1987).

Clearly, people are missing out on a fantastic name!



www.ssa.gov/pressoffice/pr/babynames2012-pr.html

Thursday, May 9, 2013 Mark Hinkle, Acting Press Officer
For Immediate Release 410-965-8904
[e-mail]
Jacob and Sophia Repeat atop Social Security’s Most Popular Baby Names List

Jacob Holds Top Spot Since 1999

(Printer friendly version)

Jacob and Sophia are repeat champions as America’s most popular baby names for 2012. This is the fourteenth year in a row Jacob tops the list for boys and the second year for Sophia. There is a new couple in the top 10 this year--Elizabeth and Liam replace Chloe and Daniel. Elizabeth has been here before, but this is the first time Liam breaks into the top 10. Perhaps Liam’s new found success can be attributed to Liam Neeson’s recent major roles in “Battleship” and the popular “Taken,” “The Chronicles of Narnia,” and “Clash of the Titans” franchises.

For all the top baby names of 2012, go to Social Security’s website www.socialsecurity.gov. Here are the top 10 boys and girls names for 2012:

Boys:

Jacob
Mason
Ethan
Noah
William
Liam
Jayden
Michael
Alexander
Aiden


Girls:

Sophia
Emma
Isabella
Olivia
Ava
Emily
Abigail
Mia
Madison
Elizabeth

Carolyn W. Colvin, Acting Commissioner of Social Security, reminds people to create a my Social Security account while having fun with baby names on www.socialsecurity.gov. Social Security’s website has the
top-rated online services in the U.S., including the services available with a my Social Security account, a personalized online account that people can use beginning in their working years and continuing throughout the time they receive Social Security benefits.

More than 60 million Social Security beneficiaries and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) recipients can now access their benefit verification letter, payment history, and earnings record instantly using their online account. Social Security beneficiaries also can change their address and start or change direct deposit information online.

People age 18 and older who are not receiving benefits can sign up for a my Social Security account to get a personalized online Social Security Statement. The online Statement provides eligible workers with secure and convenient access to their Social Security earnings and benefit information, and estimates of future benefits they can use to plan for their retirement.

People age 18 and older can sign up for an account at www.socialsecurity.gov/myaccount. Once there, they must be able to provide information about themselves and answers to questions that only they are likely to know. After completing the secure verification process, people can create a my Social Security account with a unique user name and password to access their information.

Now back to the list. Many pop-culture naming trends appear in a popular feature of Social Security’s baby names website--the “change in popularity” page. This year’s winners for biggest jump in popularity in the Top 500 are Major and Arya. .

The fastest riser on the girls’ list may have been influenced by the popular cable TV series “Game of Thrones.” Arya is the daughter of a leader of one of the Seven Kingdoms. She also is an expert sword fighter, so doubt her influence on the popular names list at your own risk.

For the boys, parents may associate Major with the military title. Acting Commissioner Colvin added “I have no doubt Major’s rising popularity as a boy’s name is in tribute to the brave members of the U.S. military, and maybe we’ll see more boys named General in the future.” You also might trace Major’s increase in popularity to a cable TV show. “Home by Novogratz” is a popular home design show featuring Major Novogratz, the youngest son of designers Robert and Cortney.

The second fastest riser for boys was Gael, and for girls, Perla. Both names most likely are on the rise due to the increase in the Spanish-speaking population in the United States. Perla is the Latinized version of Pearl and is popular among Hispanic-Americans. Gael’s popularity could be tied to Mexican actor Gael Garcia Bernal.

Social Security started compiling baby name lists in 1997, and the agency’s website offers lists of baby names for each year since 1880. Social Security is America’s source for most popular baby names because parents supply this information to the agency when applying for a child’s Social Security number at the time of the child’s birth.

[mrs.jacinthe]

Interesting! My name has been top 1000 for over a hundred years, but I've never cleared 275 ... and as of the most recent data, it's slipping perilously close to falling out of the top 1000. (Not surprising to me ... I'd never stick a kid with this name).

[thewop]

I'm saddened that Colette is now in the top 1000 (#659). It hasn't been in the top 1000 since the 80's and now all of the sudden it shows up! WTF?

[emjacobs]

My name is almost always (if not always) in the top 10.

[bunnymendelbaum]

My name is just outside the 100. Too common for me.
DD1s name isn't in the 1000. DD2s is almost 900.

Wop is Colette a name you've used? My DH loves that name.

[thewop]

May 9, 2013 19:05:25 GMT -5 bunnymendelbaum said:

My name is just outside the 100. Too common for me.
DD1s name isn't in the 1000. DD2s is almost 900.

Wop is Colette a name you've used? My DH loves that name.

No, but it was almost DD's name and is still on the list for phantom DD#2.  My DH loves the name too.

[auntie]

Love Colette. DS's preschool crush was a tiny wisp of a thing named Colette. He carried that torch for years. She had a blond bob, cute glasses and more shoes than I have owned in my entire life.

DS's name was at about 400 when we named him; it's trending into the low 70s. I am not thrilled by this as I only agreed to the name as it wasn't "popular".

[bunnymendelbaum]

Can I just say I like this thread because it makes me feel like less of a name snob?
We actually met a little girl Cosette when I was prett pregnant, she was sort of a dud. Took the out if the running for us.

[minniebee]

My parents swear they didn't know any other girls with my name when they named me. It was #13 that year, and in the top 20 for each of the 3 years before and after I was born, so I call BS :-)

Then again, I have a name that has always been fairly popular, it's still in the top 50 in the 2012 rankings.

My brother also ended up with a very popular name, one that remains in the top 100 today but was in the top 15 when he was born. Apparently my parents weren't very creative. But I still like my name.

[simpsongal]

DH and I will definitely be checking this list when I finally get KU - probably crossing-off the top 20+ names from our lists.

Fingers crossed, our favorite names are not in the top 10.

[emoflamingo]

Poor Baby W is going to always be a first name, last initial. It's okay, kiddo. I was too.

Monkey, however, will be "boy first name" and not "first name, last initial" because people have deemed it a gender neutral name. NO. NO NO NO.

[emjacobs]

I was one of 7 Emily's born on the same day at the same hospital. And it's not a big hospital.