The Baby Name Color Wheel
What color names are given most to babies? Do American baby names span the rainbow? And have our hue choices changed over time?
Beyond the Stats: a Hidden World of Names
There are far, far more names than we imagine. The usual stats only include names given to 5 or more boys or girls in a single year. What about the ultra-rare names? How many names were literally unique?
These Names Were Once Hidden Gems. What Happened?
It’s the ultimate baby name dream: a name that’s stylish and appealing, yet undiscovered. I published my first “Why Not?” list back in 2004. How well have those choices stood the test of time?
So You’ve Written a Gay Romance Novel. What’s Your Pen Name?
Romance novels are a genre dominated by pen names. What kind of names do the authors of LGBT romances choose?
Want to See 400 Years of French Baby Names?
A French genealogy site offers the chance to look at four centuries of baby name popularity. What new questions can such a long view answer?
A Paean to Common Names
A social media thread makes the case that a name can be extraordinary not despite its steady use, but because of it.
Olympic Baby Names are Vanishing
What do Simone Biles, Michael Phelps and Katie Ledecky have in common? The three dominant athletes have had the exact same impact on American baby naming: none at all.
Lessons in Naming from American Sign Language
Who gets to name Kamala Harris? For those of us in the hearing world, the question may scarcely make sense. But for American Sign Language users, the question was a pressing one after the 2020 election.
Boyish Nicknames for Girls Are Coming Back Again—With a Twist
You should expect to meet a lot more Frankies, Stevies and Georgies in the years ahead. And you should expect most of them to be girls.
The Many Faces of X
The letter X has put its stamp on the past generation of American baby names. X is now a force to be reckoned with—but not for everyone.
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