If it’s March, it’s time for the big playoffs.
No, not basketball.
I mean, sure. For some people.
But at Appellation Mountain, it’s March Madness Baby Names season.
We take the sixteen most-viewed posts on the site during last calendar year, and they face off, bracket-style, until we have a single champion.
The most popular names here don’t look like the Top Ten anywhere else. But that’s part of the fun! Instead of voting for Olivia or Ava, this contest is heavy on names not even in the current US Top 1000 – at least not yet.
Still, the names that win? They tend to be a little more mainstream – and often, just slightly ahead of the curve when it comes to popularity.
Past March Madness Baby Names winners are as follows:
- Nathaniel and Louisa in 2011
- Arthur and Genevieve in 2012
- Archer and Isla in 2013
- Everett and Cora in 2014
- Finn and Cora in 2015*
- Theodore and Sylvie in 2016
- Leo and Wren in 2017
- Rowan and Eliza in 2018
- Arlo and Margot in 2019
- Caspian and Tess in 2020
- Raphael and Magnolia in 2021
- August and Marigold in 2022
*After Cora’s back-to-back wins, readers voted to remove any winning name from future years’ competitions.
That brings us to this year’s competition.
There’s a controversial entry in this year’s batch: James, for a girl. There’s literally a post on this site titled “James for a Girl.” And that post? Is wildly popular. In fact, it was the #1 post in 2022. And so it’s competing on the girls’ side, despite being overwhelming – and traditionally – used for boys.
Don’t like it? Don’t worry. You can vote for Gemma.
Or any name you like.
But please do vote!
GIRLS OPENING ROUND
JAMES (for a girl) v GEMMA
RUE v MAISIE
LILA v MARLOWE
NAVY v ZELLA
NOA v POPPY
BETTY v BERNADETTE
OAKLEY v POLLY
FAYE v VESPER
Thank you for voting!
Polls remain open through Wednesday, March 15th. Come back on Saturday, March 18th to see if your favorites won – and, of course, to vote in the next round.
I found it interesting that Betty and Bernadette are facing off against each other when Betty could easily be a nickname for Bernadette.
I’m hoping Polly or Gemma for the win this year!
Definitely pulling for Lila this year! It was my beloved grandma’s first name – she was born in 1935 in Missouri, and I wish I knew how her name was chosen! Her younger sisters were named Annette and Martha Jo, more common names for the time. Lila’s middle name was actually Faye, another entry for this year, so both have a sweet, vintage feel to me.
It’s good to start being mad in March again! Lila’s my favourite this time around.