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Top of the Heap

Jun 1, 2004

Social Security has just released its 2003 statistics on baby names in the United States. There haven't been any major revolutions in the top ten, although Elizabeth crept back onto the list at number 9 and Anthony made it onto the boys' top ten. As I did with last years' list, I've put together a list of alternatives to 2003's most popular names. Many people will be happy enough to use the names on the top of the list and there are some beautiful ones. For those who object to using a popular name, though, these alternatives may provide you with some ideas of names that evoke the same feel as the popular ones, while remaining unique for the time being. I make no guarantees that they'll stay that way for any length of time.

Girls:

1. Emily - Emmeline, Amelia, Amelie, Emlyn, Amala
2. Emma - Esme, Ella, Etta, Ana, Amada
3. Madison - Madeleine, Maxine, Mattie, Magalie, Addison
4. Hannah - Anna, Hania, Shanna, Anika, Channah
5. Olivia - Oliana, Livia, Olena, Lilia, Antonia
6. Abigail - Annabel, Abiona, Adelaide, Avigail, Rachel
7. Alexis - Alice, Alessia, Lexine, Oleksa, Allie
8. Ashley - Ashlyn, Astrid, Aisling, Ariel, Aster
9. Elizabeth - Eliza, Libby, Elsa, Bethany, Lily
10. Samantha - Samara, Samira, Susannah, Samina, Calanthe
11. Isabella - Belle, Ilse, Isemay, Isadora, Anabella
12. Sarah - Sarina, Sally, Sadie, Sera, Shana
13. Grace - Hope, Honour, Graciela, Gracilia, Anne
14. Alyssa - Alicia, Allison, Lissa, Aileen, Alina
15. Lauren - Lorraine, Laura, Laurine, Laurel, Lorena
16. Kayla - Kara, Katya, Katrine, Kate, Kaia
17. Brianna - Bree, Bridget, Briar, Breanne, Brita
18. Jessica - Jessamine, Jenessa, Jessenia, Geneva, Jennica
19. Taylor - Tea, Tatum, Tara, Tyler, Tacey
20. Sophia - Sonia, Sophronia, Serafina, Sora, Saphira

Boys:

1. Jacob - Coby, Japheth, Jared, Jeremiah, Iakob
2. Michael - Micaiah, Raphael, Michel, Mikhael, Mikala
3. Joshua - Josiah, Jonas, Jason, Jeffrey, Jeremy
4. Matthew - Matthias, Marc, Maxwell, Malcolm, Matteo
5. Andrew - André, Andras, Anakalë, Angus, Austin
6. Joseph - Joel, Giuseppe, Jacek, José, Iosif
7. Ethan - Evan, Ian, Eli, Elliot, Eamon
8. Daniel - Nathaniel, Dante, Dariel, Adniel, Dario
9. Christopher - Christian, Crispin, Allister, Chandler, Tupper
10. Anthony - Antonin, Anton, Anatole, Antonio, Anselmo
11. William - Will, Liam, Willis, Willem, Wilson
12. Ryan - Rye, Rylan, Riley, Rigel, Brian
13. Nicholas - Colin, Nico, Nicolai, Tobias, Cole
14. David - Dacey, Damien, Dane, Darren, Dai
15. Tyler - Ty, Tyson, Tyrus, Tier, Carter
16. Alexander - Alistair, Alec, Alexius, Xander, Sandre
17. John - Jonathan, Jean, Jovan, Jack, Sean
18. James - Seamus, Jacques, Jaime, Jamison, Jamaal
19. Dylan - Declan, Dallan, Devlin, Dion, Daylan
20. Zachary - Zane, Zechariah, Zephaniah, Zakiah, Zaki

Also in reference to last year's names, I made some predictions about what names would be on the rise. Here's what happened in 2003.

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2. Jun 4, 2004 9:20 PM
In response to message posted by Zanzi:

Many thanks! I also find the popularity lists interesting...you can see some real turn aro ...

-- posted by Kristen Cardozo

1. Jun 2, 2004 1:27 PM
...the names that remain popular. I especially liked the alternatives you mentioned; some of these are truly beautiful.

-- posted by Zanzi

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