So, when I lived down in Washington, the Tri-Cities, there were three Erics and two Joshs in my fourth grade class.

But I just realized that after moving up here to Alaska, I haven't met one single Eric, and only one Josh. So this got me thinking: could you figure out how popular a name is not by country, but by area?

Olivia is a very popular name at the moment. I have never met an Olivia, so would that name be seen as unique instead of common where I am? I met four or so other Cecilias down in Washington, and none up here. Duncan(my little brother) was an interesting name in Washington, but up here my little brother's best friend's name is Duncan(they could be twins, I swear).

I mean, a lot of people consult things like the US census for popular names to avoid giving their child a name that five other kids in the class will have. (Like what happened with the three Erics and two Joshs.) but what if a name you really love that is topping the charts nation wide is not so common in the city/state where you are? I mean, of course it's a good idea to avoid top names anyway, in case the child goes out of state/country/city when they get older, but it just kind of got me thinking. And of course, some names are popular pretty much everywhere, like Sarah and Jacob and Jessica and Grace, but then names like Eric, that are definitely heard of but not always overused.

I dunno. It's just kind of funny, I thought. It probably has to do with the community's culture or mindset, and that would be a REALLY interesting thing to check out, I thought.

I agree, sometimes people say a certain name is really popular or becoming really popular and I have never met another person with that name in my life. I think that even from this site everyone hears about names people like, and that they may use, and then they think it's so popular now, when it's really not. I live in Evansville, IN, and I can really only go by names at school. And that has nothing to do with names now, it has to do with names like 16 years ago. At my school, there are a lot of Chris's and Kyle's, and Dylan's. I know two Josh's. And for girls, lots of Jessica's and Katie's ofcourse. And I've noticed a lot of Kirsten's and Kristen's too.

And people are saying Olivia is popular, and that's probably true in some areas, but I've only known one Olivia and she's my cousin and she's 4. I haven't know any Erics, but now there is one in my spanish class but I think he spells it Aaric or something. And I've never met a Cecelia or Duncan, but my spanish name is Cecelia. But pronounced Say-see-lia. Names are different in certain areas.

Alyssa

Well, you've met a Cecilia now! lol. That's my name!

I'm really wondering how much of it has to do with culture or mindset. My family tends to have more old-fashioned or common names, like Matthew, Scott, Maryanne, Jill, Jacob, Cathy, Natalie, Stephanie, and then me and my brothers, Erskine, Cecilia and Duncan. My mom's name is Laurie. I know a ton more families that are the same, one such have Kelsey, Kristen, and Trenton. Could it be a family thing, or a community thing, or both? Culture? It'd be fun to go around to different places in the US, look at the different cultures and such and see which names were the most popular, and see if it's consistent with similar areas around the country. Like the science of names, or something.

I think that a lot of popular names depend on who's who on TV, in music, and books, and what celebrities are doing for names.

The most popular names for the year 2008 in Alaska are
1 James Emma
2 Jacob Ava
3 Michael Abigail
4 Ethan Sophia
5 Tyler Emily


The most popular names in 2008 in Indiana are
1 Jacob Emma
2 Ethan Olivia
3 Noah Ava
4 William Madison
5 Aiden Addison


The most popular names in 2008 in Missouri (my state) are
1 Jacob Emma
2 Ethan Ava
3 William Madison
4 Logan Olivia
5 Alexander Chloe


The most popular names for the year 1994 in Alaska are
1 Michael Jessica
2 Jacob Ashley
3 Tyler Sarah
4 Christopher Samantha
5 Daniel Taylor

The most popular names in 1994 in Indiana are
1 Jacob Ashley
2 Tyler Jessica
3 Austin Taylor
4 Michael Emily
5 Zachary Sarah

The most popular names in 1994 in Missouri (my state) are
1 Jacob Ashley
2 Tyler Jessica
3 Austin Emily
4 Michael Taylor
5 Matthew Samantha

O_o Wow... That is insane... What is it that keeps Jacob so popular?? Besides Twilight...

But what about names that aren't topping the charts? Names around maybe 50-25 place... How much do those change by area?

Well here down south, there are a lot of Brittany's , Ashleys, Kayleen, Kayla ( any name that begins with Kay), Megan, Breanna, and Caitlyns, and also Bobby, Jason, Aiden, Trey, and any combo name like John Paul, Jimmy Kyle, Jim Bob......