So often, we believe our child’s name has to be different. Distinctive. But there are very good reasons to use common names.
When everybody is naming their kid like a Kar-Jenner, sticking with classics and current favorites might feel like a mistake.
Let’s push back against that pressure. Because the same freedom that means you can name your baby Andromeda or Flair also means you can choose something more familiar.
In fact, most of us are going to choose names that aren’t wildly original – and that’s a good thing.
So here are ten good reasons to use common names. Because yes, you can call your baby Harper or Emma, Liam or Jack. Use the name you love, even if someone on the internet thinks it’s not terribly original.
Table of Contents
- 10. Popular names tend to be great names with universal appeal.
- 9. They’re easy to spell.
- 7. Repetition is rarely necessary.
- 6. Even a #1 name is less popular than it ever was in prior generations.
- 5. Some of the most popular names might still sound novel.
- 4. Some of the most popular names might be truly enduring.
- 3. Some kids embrace being one of many.
- 2. There are no guarantees that an uncommon name will stay that way.
- 1. Your favorite name might have meaning.
10. Popular names tend to be great names with universal appeal.
Read through any list of popular names with an open mind. Chances are you’ll like them. How often have you heard – or said – something like this: “Olivia is such a great name. Too bad it’s so popular!” But that’s their strength. Names like Ava and Theodore become popular precisely because they have such broad appeal.
9. They’re easy to spell.
Unless you decide to name your daughter Emmalie, one advantage of a common name is rarely having to correct others. Plenty of us wear cumbersome last names. If you’re constantly spelling Niedalkowski or Johannsen, maybe having a first name like Ava is a good idea. And if you’re crossing cultures, sticking with a simple pick might be wise, too.
7. Repetition is rarely necessary.
Try this exercise. Call your daughter Clio. Introduce her to someone new. Hear new person say, “Hi, Chloe.” Politely say, “Actually, she’s Clio.” Repeat a bajillion times.
This probably wouldn’t happen with Charlotte or Luke. We expect to meet children with those names. Yes, everyone will eventually remember that your son is called Eben, not Evan or Ethan or Benjamin. But be prepared to smile lots until that happens.
6. Even a #1 name is less popular than it ever was in prior generations.
My daughter went through all of elementary school without a single Harper in any of her classes. There were no boys named Noah. Just one Ava, only two Jacobs in the whole school while she was there.
In 1908, over 5% of boys were John and more than 5% of girls were Mary. Even in 1978, nearly 4% of boys were named Michael, and over 3.5% of girls were called Jennifer. Today, a mere 1% of all children born each year receive the most popular name, and the percentage continues to drift lower.
5. Some of the most popular names might still sound novel.
Name your daughter Jennifer today, and odds are good she’ll be the only Jenny in her class. “But,” you protest, “I knew so many Jennys growing up! I want something unusual. Like Scarlett.”
As it happens, Scarlett is a chart-topper a Top 50 name for over a decade. But today’s parents certainly didn’t grow up with a Scarlett, and that might be all that matters.
4. Some of the most popular names might be truly enduring.
If you love the classics, why not use Elizabeth and James for your children? Sure, they’ll know others with their name. But they could hop in a time machine and probably meet another James or Elizabeth throughout much of history.
Other names age gracefully. Former favorites Amanda and Martin are far from their heyday, but remain perfectly reasonable – even sensible – picks for a child. Names carried to the top of the charts by pop culture trends can mellow into modern traditionals. Think of Dylan or Isla. Many popular names do stand the test of time.
3. Some kids embrace being one of many.
We think sharing a name would be frustrating, but somewhere out there? There’s a little Kate who met her best friend because she had the same name. Similar stories on every playground in America.
Just because one person dislikes growing up with a Top Ten name doesn’t mean your child would mind being Jack T.
2. There are no guarantees that an uncommon name will stay that way.
The year is 2010. You choose the stunning, unusual Aria for your daughter.
Fast forward to today, and every time you call your teenage daughter’s name in a crowd, younger girls’ heads turn. (Your teenager, of course, does not answer, because you’re embarrassing her.)
Today’s stylish, but uncommon choice – think Elora, Elio, or Ares – could be just a few short years away from the Top 100.
1. Your favorite name might have meaning.
Maybe you’ve always wanted to name your daughter Emma, after your favorite book. Or maybe William was your beloved grandfather’s name. If that’s the case, their popularity doesn’t matter one bit. The name will always feel just right.
Can you think of more good reasons to use a common name? If you picked something more popular for your child, how did it work out?
First published on February 25, 2009, this post was updated on November 27, 2022 and again on April 3, 2026.
There were four Karens in my fourth grade class of 28, including me. So I very much know the pains of having a popular name. Except, it was the name my parents both liked (as opposed to Hezekiah, which only my father liked!) and as I’ve gotten older and hang out less with people all born in the same year, it’s much less burdensome.
I do have to spell my name, though! Caryn, Caren, Karyn – I’ve seen people default to all three! Of course, I think Karen is the “correct” one, hee!
This is a great, thought-provoking post. It makes the much-needed point that just because a name is popular, it shouldn’t immediately be dismissed. Names are popular for a reason!
I loved this post. I recently mentioned in another comment on this site that I am getting more and more bold in trying to forget about a name’s popularity and just go with the ones that I like. I know a lot of Sarahs, but I still think the name is beautiful, no matter how many times I hear it. Same with Amanda and Emily.
Incidentally, I grew up with an Amy N. and an Amy C. in my class all the way through fifth grade. They had a tight bond, and frankly, I was jealous of their short, trendy name. My name was unwieldy and bulky in comparison, and because of the variant spelling, looked masculine amid all the names of the late 70s that ended in “-y”. Some of us just wanted to fit in; others just want to stand out. It’s impossible to determine which will be the desire of my future child, so I figure I’ll just quit worrying about popularity of a name and just choose the one I think is the best fit.
Congrats, Lyndsay! I love Dashiell.
As the mother of James Kenneth, these are basically all the reasons I kept soothing myself with. I felt comfortable with a strong, classic name, but as a Kayt/Kate in school, I hated being one a kazillion Kates and Katies. It didn’t help that my parents and sister all have familiar but unusual names (Brett, Margo, and Amelia). Amelia’s going through the thing where her name is getting pretty trendy. She’s never had more than one other Amelia in her whole school, but she works at a preschool where there are two Amelias and an Emilia out of fifty kids! I remind myself that while James will probably run into several other James throughout life, he’ll probably be the only one in his class. He might get mixed up with the three Jaydons, though!
Great post! Our 2 girls’ names are not on the top 1000 list at all. We’ve been thru the…
1. great grandparents can’t remember their names and call them weird things
2. constantly spelling the names for other people
3. the names getting pronounced wrong, even though they follow phonetic rules
4. the names getting mistaken as common names (my 1st daughter has been called Olivia and Ophelia, LOL, and my 2nd has been called Zoe repeatedly). Depending on the situation, sometimes I don’t correct them, LOL!
Even so, I’m glad they have unique names. Now we’re desperately searching for a 3rd unique girl name and its been a futile search. Nothing fits! I’m noticing a trend on Baby Name boards to look for the unusual…so I can already tell which names WILL BE popular given another few years, because the same unusual names keep popping up (item #2 on the list). I’ve actually seen Evangeline pop up enough times that I suspect it will climb (maybe not top 10, but I suspect it will become a recognizable name before long – perhaps a top 200, or top 100?)
Wow, congratulations Lyndsay Jenness!
This is actually very interesting. I don’t know how many times I’ve dismissed a name on the basis of how popular it is, despite the fact I know perhaps only one or two people who carry it. I think, however, it depends on where you live; my town tends to be quite conservative in its naming and so, when I help out at the creche at my local church, there always seems to be a Sam and a Joshua, if not several! Saying that, though, I came across a little girl named Evangeline on Monday- it was quite the event!
Emma, there’s something in that! There’s a huge difference between names that are popular among the general population and names that are popular among people we know.
I’ve said the flip side of this when defending unusual names – live in a big enough city, and anything is “normal.” Until you up and move to a small town somewhere, at which point Caradoc and Briar are going to stand out a mile!
But if I think about popular names, what really matters is names that are popular with the people you know – so regardless of where you live, think about your immediate circle of friends, neighbors and colleagues. By that standard, the most popular boys’ names in my world are Max, William, James, Zachary and Theodore, with Charles (nn Charlie) taking the #1 spot. For girls, Emma is #1, and there isn’t a clear #2, though Isabella and Sophie/Sophia are probably up there, too.
Evangeline! How cool!
Can someone please tell me if I am crazy for sort of loving Evangeline?
I don’t think so – I have good friends who are planning to use Evangeline for their daughter, due in early 2011. If you look at all the Eve names: Eva, Evelyn, etc., there’s no reason to think Evangeline wouldn’t fit in.
It’s a Louisiana name. We have a parish named Evangeline Parish and it’s French. I’ve heard of several down here, but I’m not familiar of their use in the north.
Only if I’m crazy. 😉 DD is Evangeline. She just turned 3.
Congrats Lyndsay! Dashiell David Rowe is really lovely!
A name’s ranking’s didn’t stop me from using it, but did make me pause before usung it. And funnily enough it was the boys name that made me do it. Leo was quite unfashionable almost 23 years ago but the thought of not honoring my wonerful Uncle Leo (long gone by the time mine was born) was just too awful to tnk about, so Leo he became. I must admit when he was little, I did repeat it a fair bit. Simon, they got; Leo got Lee? Leon? Leroy? And I must have said no, Leo about a thousand times a day for 5 or 6 years. But people did eventually get it. And it makes me laugh to see a god number of people singing the praises of Leo today.
The only popular names I would use, if he’d let me are Elisabeth, which would give her respelling problems forever and Sophie, which seems to give people fits thinking it’s Sophia (which I hate). On the boys side, James & William are the two I’d happily use, again, if I was allowed to. There are far too many of them already for his comfort.
I didn’t mind sharing my name too much with my peers but was horrified at 11 to find I had a teacher with the same name. She was OLD! 🙂 I still wish my mother had been able to name me Alice. I very much feel like one but think I got a decent deal.
I loved this post, Verity. While family concerns and older names are my first loves, I find nothing wrong with the classics. Suddenly popular (aka trendy) do bother me a bit, the invented, wrong gendered feeling ones (I’m talking about YOU, Madison), just enough to not only not want to use them myself but to go ‘eww’ in my head when I run across one. (I’d never, ever say anything aloud!) But the classics? There’s a reason they’re called classics. They’re enduringly appealing.
Thanks, Lola! It is interesting to hear that Leo once got the same reception. Everyone seems to be wild ’bout Leo these days! But how could they ever confuse him for Leroy! Yikes!
As it happens, I *am* a Leo – born July 26 – so I’ve long loved the name. But my baby brother has called Leo for a future son. (Eric Leonidas, to be exact.) So I suppose Clio will probably someday have a cousin with a rhyming name … oh well, here’s hoping my (adored, but not-yet-grown-up-enough) brother is years away from fatherhood. 🙂
You make some really good points here. #7, I think this is a really important one. When you look at the number/percent of actual babies born with popular names, it makes it seem not so bad. When I was considering the name James, I looked at it’s percentage in my state today vs. when I was born and realized that the number is far less now than it was then, and I can only think of 1 James from all my years in school! Not so bad!
I think I would use a common name if it were a classic, but not one that’s just trendy, like Aidan. My two absolute favorite girls names used to be Sophia and Olivia. I still love them, and even though they’re so popular, I never get tired of them. I wouldn’t be able to bring myself to use them while they’re this popular though.
In other news, I had my baby on Friday! His name is Dashiell David Rowe!
CONGRATULATIONS! Dashiell David Rowe is a fabulous name. I’m so happy for you. 🙂