2016 Comeback Kids

I thought long and hard about what posts I wanted to put up about the changes in popularity and such for the 2016 SSA list. I decided I wanted to focus on the comeback kids because I don't see them floating around a lot. Every year when the new SSA name list comes out I like to take a look and see what names have made their way back onto the list. These are names that were in the top 1000 any year before but were not in the top 1000 in 2015. That means that they can be of the charts for one year or 10 years.

Eliezer #997

Last Ranked in 2014 (#865)

Maddux #984

Last Ranked in 2014 (#992)

Konner #972

Last Ranked in 2014 (#920)

Foster #965

Last Ranked in 2014 (#991)

Brayson #957

Last Ranked in 2014 (#978)

Jair #938

Last Ranked in 2014 (#993)

Ramiro #933

Last Ranked in 2014 (#888)

Jericho #932

Last Ranked in 2014 (#950)

Tristian #930

Last Ranked in 2014 (#874)

Khalid #909

Last Ranked in 2014 (#959)

Howard #900

Last Ranked in 2014 (#988)

Bridger #859

Last Ranked in 2014 (#985)

Jamar #990

Last Ranked in 2013 (#904)

Krish #983

Last Ranked in 2013 (#885)

Brysen #872

Last Ranked in 2013 (#951)

Ralph #992

Last Ranked in 2011 (#954)

Keanu #971

Last Ranked in 2005 (#974)

Koda #927

Last Ranked in 2004 (#935)

Hakeem #905

Last Ranked in 1998 (#788)

Lyle #981

Last Ranked in 1995 (#927)

Westley #912

Last Ranked in 1994 (#971)

Ira #950

Last Ranked in 1992 (#946)

Leif #969

Last Ranked in 1987 (#957)

Harris #967

Last Ranked in 1988 (#972)

Gus #999

Last Ranked in 1978 (#994)

Karim #906 

Last Ranked in 1978 (#879)

Creed #982

Last Ranked in 1910 (#942)

Antonia #993

Last Ranked in 2014 (#975)

Riya #977

Last Ranked in 2014 (#966)

Anniston #976

Last Ranked in 2014 (#905)

Aubri #972

Last Ranked in 2014 (#832)

Rosalyn #960

Last Ranked in 2014 (#985)

Alyvia #923

Last Ranked in 2014 (#920)

Mercy #791

Last Ranked in 2014 (#935)

Ayana #973

Last Ranked in 2013 (#962)

Rayne #941

Last Ranked in 2013 (#934)

Alianna #998

Last Ranked in 2011 (#973)

Maren #936

Last Ranked in 2008 (#964)

Jana #917

Last Ranked in 2005 (#970)

Chandler #995

Last Ranked in 2002 (#986)

Maxine #904

Last Ranked in 1996 (#984)

Ramona #951

Last Ranked in 1988 (#876)

Davina #975

Last Ranked in 1987 (#970)

Mavis #789

Last Ranked in 1963 (#946)

Vada #902

Last Ranked in 1946 (#985)

Emmie #908

Last Ranked in 1935 (#986)

Belle #933

Last Ranked in 1934 (#975)

All of the names are ordered from least amount of time spent off the SSA top 1000 list to most about of time spent off the SSA top 1000 list. You will find that the names who spent only a year off the list first.

Some interesting things about the lists above include The boys name Creed. It has not been in the top 1000 since 1910! Can you believe its been 106 years the name ranked?! And the best part is it has only ranked in those 2 years. Now I am wondering what could have made the name rank in both these years and so far apart.

Creed isn't the only name to rank in just two separate years. Names on the above list that fit into that category include Koda, Brayson, Anniston, and Alianna.

I noticed what seems to be a little trend going on at the bottom of the SSA chart. Vintage girl names are popping up after years of being off the list. Names like Emmie, Belle Vada, and Mavis all haven't ranked since the 1930s and 1940s.

Miss World 2014

The Miss World winner was just crowned a few days ago. I happened to catch it on Tumblr I believe and the winner's name caught my eye. Her name was Rolene and that is what sparked this post. I went and looked at all of the contestants and found some pretty cool and fun names. And now we have a post about it. 

Rosetta Cartwright

• Bahamas
• Variant of Rosa meaning Rose
• Latin

Although I thin of the language software at first, I think this is a cool variant of the name Rose. I believe people will get over the initial Rosetta Stone thought quickly. Roe, Rosie. and Etta are all cute nicknames. 

Leandra Gracia Caicedo

• Colombia 
• Lioness 
• Greek 

Leandra is such a gorgeous, strong name. I love the meaning because lions are fierce, beautiful animals. I also like the boy name Leander a who ton and could have influence on my liking to the name. 

Gayle Sulvaran

• Curaçao 
• Variant of Abigail meaning my father is joy 
• Hebrew 

Gayle is so simple and straight forward. It's kind of old lady chic. If I was to use it, it would be as a nickname for Abigail. 

Ioánna Filíppou

• Cyprus 
• Variant of Joanna meaning God is gracious 
• Greek 

One word does this name not look beautiful to you?! I just love looking at it and even saying it (re-oh-ah-nah). It's filled with vowels too. 

Amina Ashraf

• Egypt
• Trustworthy, faithful
• Arabic 

I love my A names, especially when it is a girl name that begins and ends with an A. The name sounds so pretty with the mee sound in the middle. It ages really well too. 

Keyla Lisbeth Bermúdez Nuñez

• Guatemala 
• Variant of Kayla meaning slim and fair
• Irish 

At first glance the name looks like Kayla but I feel like people in English speaking countries will pronounce it like Key-la and not Kay-la. I think the name looks really pretty and fresh spelled Keyla. 

Edina Kulcsár

• Hungary 
• Wealthy 
• English 

I was never the biggest fan of E names but in recent months I have started to really love them. Edina is another pretty name that I really like. The E makes it a little exotic and I like names that have the -ina sound. 

Koyal Rana

• India 

I wasn't able to find information on the name Koyal except that it is definitely an Indian name. Every website had something to do with India. The way I am pronouncing it is like Royal but with a K. I think Coy would be a cute nickname. 

Dewi Liana Seriestha

• Malaysia
• Variant of David meaning beloved 
• Welsh 

Dewi is really a boy name in most countries to my knowledge. I immediately think of Dewey from Malcolm in the Middle when I hear this name and can't really take it seriously on a girl. It would be really cute and different though. 

Milica Vulklis

• Serbia 
• Favor, grace
• Slavonic 

Milica is such a pretty name. I have never heard it before but it really goes well with other names like Amelia and Lilika. Milly would be such a cute nickname!

Rolene Strauss

• South Africa 
• Free Man 
• German 

Rolene was the winner of Miss World 2014 and the reason I started this post. Her name is so unique and different. I think it's just nice to look at. Rolly would be a cute nickname. 

Maeya Nonthawen Thongleng

• Thailand 

I was unable to find information on the name Maeya. I still think it I really different and I pronounce it May-yuh. It could be a nice alternative to May. 

Andriana Khasanshin

• Ukraine 
• Variant of Andrea meaning manly, virile 
• Greek

I love Andriana! It's so pretty and long. It's different but not crazy out there. I like that it begins and ends with an A. Andi, Andri, and Annie are all cute nicknames for it. 

Romina Fernández Sellanes

• Uruguay 
• Variant of Roma, a place name (Rome) 
• Italian 

I think Romina is yet another pretty name. You can see that I think most girl names are pretty. I love Ro- names because the nickname Roe is so cute on a girl. Rome and Romy are also possibly nicknames.

I really thought it was going to be hard finding information on these names because some of this names were so different. This post was honestly one of the quickest posts I've done. One of my favorite things about this post was that I got to see names on people in different countries. 

What was everyone's favorite names? Here are the names for recap:

Rosetta

Leandra

Gayle

Ioanna

Amina

Keyla

Edina

Koyal 

Dewi

Milica

Rolene

Maeya

Andriana

Romina

My favorite has got to be Andriana with Milica in second. 

*Photos all came from http://www.missworld.com/Contestants/*

Surprising Name Loves

Sometimes I start loving names that simply surprise me. Names that have nothing to do with my usual loves or style. Many times they are names that are pretty popular and popular names are something I usually hate. The following  names are names I am loving lately and am actually surprised I love them.

James is such a classic and pretty popular name. Within the last few months I have met two James's that are college students and I would say they have helped me love the name but it should really be the opposite. I do not like the nicknames Jim or Jimmy so I would either call him James or even Jam or Jem. Jamie is a nice nickname too. Because I have an older cousin named James I don't think it would be usable. Although he only goes by Jimmy and I have never heard him called James. If I wasn't going to call my baby Jimmy than it could work.

Pip is such a cool nickname for a little boy. It's actually kind of vintage because it's usually used as a nickname for Phillip. I always find nicknames that I love but never full names to go with them. I don't like Phillip so I'm still on the look out for full names.

The very first time I heard the name Nigella I hated it. It was too masculine sounding to me. After doing a name post on Ella names I am now in love with it. It sounds so pretty and even more unique. This name isn't exactly a surprise to me because I like unique names and I also love girl names that end in an A. The surprising part is how I went from hating the name to loving it.

I recently did a post on my name instagram about this name because to was a request from a follower. When I first saw the name I didn't like it at all. Since doing the post I have really started to love the name. Saying it out loud seemed to help a lot. When it comes to names I really like sharp sounds and letters like v, z, x, and k. I also like that it's short and ends with an A. Really it reminds me of the name Ava a lot because they both end in the -av sound and are two syllables.

"Rare" N Girl Names

Nell

• Meaning: Diminutive form of Ellen or Helen; bright, shining one
• Origin: English 
• Siblings: Evie and Theo

I enjoy the name Nell greatly. To me it is the cutest little girl nickname that can grow nicely with her. Some of my favorite full names for it are Penelope, Eleanor, and Cornelia. I would prefer it spelled Nelle, which is a less common spelling of the name. You could also use the name Nella, which I love even more than Nell.

Niamh (NEEV)

• Meaning: Bright 
• Origin: Irish 
• Siblings: Aoife and Niall

Niamh is the Irish spelling of the name but you can also spell it Neve. I love this name but I'm too afraid that it would never be pronounced correctly in the United States. The meaning is very nice and cute. I always get happy when names have good meanings. If anyone is brave enough to use Niamh let me know!

Norma

• Meaning: Rule 
• Origin: Latin 
• Siblings: Doris and Ralph

Norma is one of those vintage names that I just can't see coming back into popularity. It sounds very old lady to me. Plus with todays popular names it sounds extremely similar to Nora. I almost mistakes it for Nora at first. Now putting Norma in the middle name spot would be golden!



xoxo,

Daycare Names

This summer I worked at a daycare that cares for children ages newborn to 11 years old. While I was there I heard some interesting names that caught my ears. I find would love to always work with kids because than you get to hear all the fun names ;).

Girls
Ioliana (I-oll-ee-ah-na)
This little girl was a year old and just so cute! They called her Ioli (it rhymes with cannoli). I went to do research on this name but couldn't find anything! When I search Ioliana. it says it's spelled wrong and wants to spell it like Eliana but they aren't the same name. I think this is a really pretty, princess name with such an adorable nickname.

Mahriya
Although I don't particularly like this spelling of the name, I love the name it's self. One day I had to write this little girl's name down and know there was a y in it but had no clue how she spelled it. I think that is the only problem with this name. Mariah is a name that you are pleasantly surprised to see because its a sweet classic. Mariah is a Latin variant of Maria and Maria means the Lord is my teacher.

Amia (uh-me-uh)
When I first heard this name I thought the teacher's were calling her Mia but that I heard it a second time and heard it was Amia. It's such a nice alternative to the name Mia plus it has the really cute nickname Mimi. Amia means beloved in Hebrew. Last year was the first year that Amia was on the SSA's popularity list and it ranked at #998.

Coralai
You hear the names Coralee and Coraline a lot but you hardly ever hear the name Coralai. Coralai reminds me of a hawaiian girl or a tropical island somewhere. It's such a cute name with a cute nickname Cora or Cory. I like both the Coralai and the Coralei spellings. This is another name I couldn't find anything on.

Isa (EE-sa)
This little girl's full name was Isabella but they pronounced it the Spanish way. In Spanish I's are pronounced like E's. I heard the name first and had such a hard time understanding how it was spelled. I fell in love with the pronunciation. Now the little girl will probably have problems saying it the English way and not the Spanish way. But don't let that stop you from using the name!

Boys
Cowan
This name was love at first sight! I love the spelling and the pronunciation. You may also spell it Cohen, Cowen, and Coen. Cowan/Cowen has not been on the popularity list but Coen and Cohen have. Cohen was #368 in 2013. Coen hasn't been on the list since 2011 and it was ranked at #973 and before that it was only on the list in 2006 at #962. I could see people liking Cowan more because it is said and spelled the same way.

Pierre
Pierre screams French to me. I can see a little boy running around the streets of France wearing overalls and a cute little hat. It's such a strong name and not something I hear very often. This little Pierre was a Jr. (yet another shocker for me!) and at times he was called PJ or Peach. The Peach sounded like that because they just combined the P and J in his nickname. I really love Pierre.

Musa
Musa is a name that I never heard before and don't expect to hear again. I hate to say it but the first thing I thought of when I heard the name was a moose because it sounds exactly like moose but with an a at the end. I still think it is a cool, exotic name that would make a nice middle name.

Warren
Warren is such an old man name and it also reminds me of a superhero. I was pleasantly surprised to hear this name. I did have a problem where I thought they were saying Lauren but they were actually calling him. Warren is a great name that has many different pictures like a business man or a surfer.

Darrell
Darrell is even more old man sounding than Warren. It defiantly something I did not expect to hear on a little boy. Maybe he was named after his grandfather or someone else. Now that would be cool to find out!

Four Syllable Names

I am a lover of long names mainly because they have nicknames. Growing up without a nickname has made me want to give my children names that have the opportunity for nicknames. Here is a nice list of 4 syllable names with their possible nicknames.

Baby Lavinia! Source

Boys
Amadeus: Ama, Day, Deus, Ames
Antonio: Ant, Tony, Tio
Bartholomew: Bart, Leo
Cornelius: Corn, Cory, Neil
Ebenezer: Eben
Ezekiel: Zeke
Hezekiah: Hez, Zeke
Ignacio: Iggie, Nacio, Nate
Jedidiah: Jedd
Leonardo: Leo
Macallister: Mac, Cal, Al
Maximilan: Max, Mill
Oleander: Ollie, Land, Andy, Anders
Salvatore: Sal
Santiago: San, Tio
Theodoric: Theo, Teddy

Girls
Antonia: Annie, Anne, Tony, Tia
Carabella: Cara, Belle, Bella
Carolina: Cary, Lina, Lee
Floriana: Flora, Flo, Florie
Graciela: Gracie, Grace, Ella
Gravriella: Ella, Gavie, Gravie
Henrietta: Hennie, Etta
Idalia: Ida, Idie
Josalina: Josie, Lina
Katarina: Kat, Katie, Rina, Kata
Katiana: Kat, Katie
Lavinia: Livi, Vinny, Via
Liviana: Livi
Nicoletta: Nico, Nikki, Letta, Etta
Noelani: Noa, Lani
Oliviana: Ollie, Liv, Livi
Orabella: Ora, Orie, Belle, Bella
Rosaleah/Rosalia: Rosie, Rose, Rosa, Leah, Lee
Rosabella: Rose, Rosie, Rosa, Belle, Bella
Seraphina: Sera, Fifi, Fia
Theodora: Thea, Tia, Dory, Dora
Thomasina: Tommy, Sina

Honoring Sarah Elaine

A week ago I lost my grandmother. She was an amazing and strong woman and I am so proud to call her my grandmother. In honor of her and for future reference down the road, I am making a list of names that can honor her. Really they can honor anyone named Sarah or Elaine.

My grandmother's name was Sarah Elaine and they called her Sally. Here are some ways you could honor a Sarah or Elaine in a few different ways.

Similar to Sarah:
Seraphina/Seraphine
Zarah
Suri
Sariah
Sierra
Sadie
Arah

Same meaning as Sarah (princess):
Amira
Antolia
Edia
Gwenelda
Maya
Raylee
Sabrina
Soraya
Tia

Similar to Elaine:
Alaina
Delaney
Elena
Eleanor
Alana

Collins

Meaning:

• Holly 
• Victory 

Origin:

• Irish 
• Greek 

Rank:

• 960 

Middle Names:

• Collins Maebelle 
• Collins Abigail  
• Collins Indiana
• Collins Pearl 
• Collins Mackenzie 
• Collins Amelia
• Collins Seraphina 
• Collins Juliette
• Collins Faith
• Collins Hartley 

First Names:

• Emerson Collins
• Zoe Collins
• Annette Collins
• Sierra Collins
• Noelle Collins
• Annabelle Collins
• Mira Collins
• Melissa Collins
• Mia Collins
• Alexandra Collins

Nicknames:

• Collie/Colly
• Ollie
• Lyn
• Lynnie 

Famous People Named Collins:

• Collins Tuohy (real daughter from Blind Side)

My Thoughts:

• So in the past few days I have been thinking about the name Collins for a girl. I believe I started to think about it after watching Gossip Girl and hearing the boys name Collin. Collins is very boyish and modern. If you were to use the name Collins I would recommend a girly middle name. My favorite nickname is Collie.