Many prospective parents consider the meaning of names when choosing
first names and middle names for their babies. Most given names
have interesting meanings and ethnic origins, or they are variations
of such names. However, the meanings and ethnic origins of some
names have become obscured with the passage of time. Other names
are simply derived from popular surnames, and have no inherent meaning.
Of course, parents should consider other factors besides a name's meaning
when naming their baby. Some of these considerations include a
name's phonetic sound and length, as well as its popularity, ethnicity,
and family surname history. This news article discusses recent
baby name trends
and lists the top 10 boy names and girl names used in 2015. Several
studies have shown that the name a person bears does influence how he
or she is regarded by peers.
This website lists over two thousand popular names, with their meanings
and ethnic origins. In cases where names have multiple meanings, we
have attempted to identify and specify their most common meanings.
The names on the following pages are arranged in alphabetical order, and
feature links to more detailed information about each name. These
boys' and girls' names are the most popular names which parents have given
to their children in the United States of America during the last hundred
years (between 1905 and 2004). The rank and count values shown on
the detail pages are based on U.S. Social Security Administration counts
for the 1,000 most popular names given to babies as first names in each
of these years. The online name lists at Name-Meanings.org can help
you find the meaning and origin of many popular and unusual first names
for your baby boy or girl.