Otis, my kind of man! ;o) 
Posted on 12/11/2006 8:08:37 AM PST by Republican Red
BabyNames.com Announces Top Names of 2006
LOS ANGELES, Dec. 11 /PRNewswire/ -- According to the popular website BabyNames.com, Ava and Aidan were the top names for 2006. For the first time in five years, Madison slipped from the number one girl's name to number four. On the boys' side, rhyming names Aiden, Caden, Braden and Jaden continue to dominate the charts.
The BabyNames.com Top Names List is calculated from the favorite name lists of over a million site members for the year 2006.
"Celebrity culture always has an influence on naming trends," says Jennifer Moss, founder and CEO of BabyNames.com, "but it seems like it has increased in recent years."
Moss says the name Ava started becoming popular after celebrity couple Reese Witherspoon and Ryan Phillipe chose the name for their daughter in 1999. Other celeb parents who chose the name Ava include X-Man Hugh Jackman and TV star Heather Locklear.
But if you think the Federlines were the first celeb couple to go with the name Jayden, you are mistaken. Jaden (and its various spellings) first started appearing on BabyNames.com lists after Will Smith and Jada Pinkett chose the name for their son back in 1998.
"It usually takes 3-4 years for a new name to make it from the celebrities to the masses," says Moss, "and that's only if the names are not too wild!"
So although Pilot Inspektor and Fifi Trixibelle will probably not be topping the charts anytime soon, keep an eye out for Suri [Cruise] and Shiloh [Jolie-Pitt] to appear in the forthcoming years.
THE BABYNAMES.COM MOST POPULAR NAMES for 2006
GIRLS
I will stipulate to the suitability of Braden, as long as it is a) given in honor of a family member*, b) spelled "Braden"**, and c) paired with an Irish surname***.
*So yes, there has to be a Braden in the family somewhere. No naming him Braden because your wife likes the name.
**That lets out Braeden, Brayden, Braedin, and other like abominations.
***"Braden Jablome" just sounds stupid. Admit it.
No Moleman?
No. No parent could be so stupid as to use any of those names with those spellings. Please tell me that is a joke!
LOL, you know as well as I do, we associate names with people we know that have them. My dearest Grandmother had the name and was nothing but the most loving caring person I knew, made a lasting impression. My wife's grandmother seems to ride on the same plane of respect, but she can't block the nicknames out (Gertie) of the roadworks. Malanie Gertrude Grace (+lastname) would be a wonderful person to know (and if she has her momma's genes, no need for pasties would be in her future).
Smile
LowOiL
Me neither, although I considered it for my firstborn back in '96.
Xena's auxiliary baby-name rules forbid names taken from:
- flowers
- months
- seasons
- jewels
- Indian tribes
- states
- motor vehicles
It does seem like many modern names are such that the gender of the child is not obvious.
From those names, I'm guessing mamma wanted a girl....
My wife also wanted to use dead relatives, but as a source for our daughter's middle name. I put my foot down hard on that one. We finally settled on Annette in honor of Annette Island in southeastern Alaska, which is where she was conceived.
My neighbor is a school teacher who has a little girl named Shithead (pronounced "shi-theed") in her class. No, I'm not joking.
who would give their kid a middle name of Jablome???
This thread is illogical.
See #49
Or just put it at the top of the Most Popular Names list. People will change the spelling, introduce punctuation, spell it backwards...All so it looks "original", while sounding exactly the same as every other kid at school. I have ensured my children's individuality by giving them names that haven't made the Top 20 list since 1899...
you never hear Edith or Helen or Josephine much anymore either do you?
The same person who would give a kid the first name of Haywood.
The folks that share my back fence have three sons: Cameron, Colby and Caleb. Hope they grow up to be strapping young men. They'll need it.
and Amber, Tiffany and Heather will all grow up to be strippers too.
Our daughter's Grace Diane (Grace of God, plus my wife's aunt's name), if we have a boy it'll probably be Patrick Henry probably (Virginia connection + my father's and my wife's stepfather's first names, so the synergy is perfect).
And if we have a second boy someday, I think we'll go for, uh, Zedekiah Micah. >.>
}:-)4
Otis, my kind of man! ;o)
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.