2013 Trend Predictions - Oh, Baby…What a Name!
Emma, Charlie, Jack, oh my! For expectant parents, selecting a name for their impending bundle of joy can be quite overwhelming. Some couples will of course have it all figured out – or at least agree – right away, but for others – like my husband and me – it can be a 9-month process!
There are so many routes to consider. Will they be given a family name? Or do they start from scratch buying a baby name book with thousands of names (which are just daunting for me!)? What about trending baby names? Or iterations of trending baby names? For babies arriving in 2013, some of the top parenting/baby sites and unique online baby naming guide Nameberry, are forecasting that, for girls, romantic names, like Aria or Angelique, as well as gender-bending names or shortened versions of trending names (Briella for Gabriella) will top the charts. In addition, we’ll see names that have remained popular for a few years now with new spellings or endings, like Addisyn or Gracelyn. And for boys, names that represent strength and even Roman gods – like Maximiliano, Declan and Atticus. And did you know Brantley is vying for the #1 spot?
With our first, my husband and I hit the jackpot by Googling “Celebrity Baby Names.” Well, sort of. At least we knew it was going to be a girl, so we were about halfway there. We knew we’d have a family name for her middle name, and we didn’t want her to have one of the top baby names – which means she’d be one of 10 Sophia’s, Emma’s or Olivia’s in her kindergarten class (even though I love all of those names!). After arguing in circles, we looked up Celebrity Baby Names, and ended up liking a celebrity name – not her baby. So, Maya it was, and turns out the name has held the number 50-52 position on the top 100 baby name chart. We found middle ground.
But beyond current trends and selection processes, there’s news of the Royal baby – which I predict will interrupt a few of the chart-topping, fast-moving favorites, with a comeback of classic, elegant, English names and its own “Regal” trending category. In fact, there are already predictions for what this Royal darling will be named – from Elizabeth to Diana to Mary for a girl, to Charles to William to Edward for a boy. I guess we’ll just have to wait and see come July.
For now, happy naming!
Alana Horinko, Vice President