Names that Peaked in 2009

Widely used here since the fifties, Allison -- a derivative of Alice -- has now been once again surpassed by the original Alice as parents embrace vintage revivals. Despite this, Allison's popularity has held strong, and it remains steadily within the Top 100. Allison's status is challenged by up-and-coming "-son" names, from Addison to Emerson. The freshest Allison alternative may be Ellison, which adds the appeal of trendy nickname Ellie as opposed to falling nickname Allie.

Capturing some of the playful elegance of Madeleine, while avoiding any confusion over end sound, Madelyn is now an established spelling variation of the French classic. Sweet but strong, Madelyn is a versatile choice that lends itself to the almost inevitable nickname Maddy.

A widely used name, Kaylee pulls together something from Kayla and something from Hailey, yet somehow loses something in the process. It has surpassed cousin Kayla on the charts and is one of three girls' names starting with Kthat ranks in the US Top 100.

This traditional Greek name feels somewhat more distinctive than Melissa, though after a recent upward blip in popularity, it seems to be sliding back down -- which may not be a bad thing for parents looking for a name that both fits in and stands out.

Malia rose up the charts back in 2009 when it was brought into the spotlight as the name of the Obama's eldest daughter. It leapt into the US Top 200, and while it hasn't reached that level of popularity again, it now sees steady usage, and is given to around 1100 girls every year.

Teagan is a cousin of trendy names Reagan and Keagan now given to girls about six times as often as boys. As an Irish name, it's a diminutive of the original Tadhg. Teagan may also be a variation of the Welsh Tegan, a saint's name that means fair.

A melodic name that's taking off in the African-American community, along with sound-alikes such as Amari, Jamari, and Damari.

Fernanda is very popular in the Latino community, with a lot more charm than its male counterpart. The standard nickname is Nanda, and variations include Ferdinanda and Fernandina.

Some parents, including rapper Ludacris, are literally bestowing good karma on their children; it could just join the new spiritual name congregation.

This distinctive spelling was popularized by the R&B singer Mya (Harrison) and has inspired many baby namers to adopt Mya for themselves.

Widely used in the Hispanic community, as is the shorter Isai. While the original Isaiah and cousin Isaac are much more popular, Isaias commanded attention as the name of a storm in the summer of 2020.

Possibly a derivative variation of Yara, a popular name in Spanish-speaking countries meaning butterfly, Yareli was given to more than 400 baby girls in the US last year.

More popular than the Jalen spelling. Like other names with many variants, when you count up all the alternatives, the name is much more popular than it first appears.

Kaleb is one of several boys' names starting with k that started life as a classic C name, Caleb. Kevin Federline named his boy Kaleb Michael Jackson.

Analia is a melodic newcomer to the US Top 1000, a fresher spin on the Olde Worlde Anamaria. It charted in the US from 2009 to 2012, and then reentered the popularity list in 2015. El Rostro de Analia is a popular Spanish language telenova on the Telemundo channel, which probably greatly contributed to its initial entry to the US list in 2009 at Number 331 when it was unranked the previous year!

While the traditionally spelled Madison has been among the most popular names in the 21st century, this version isn't exactly unpopular. Nevertheless, the second d is superfluous.

Cayden is one of the many spellings of this popular name, made all the more popular when they're counted together. According to our annual Playground Analysis, Cayden and brothers rank a cumulative Number 14 among boys' names, given last year to more than 11,000 baby boys in the US.

Kaylin is a variation of Kayla and Katelyn that had several years of chart climbing before reaching a peak of Number 372 in 2009. Cailin and Kailyn are two other spellings.

Reece is a less popular respelling of Reese, made famous by actress Witherspoon. Reese is the most popular spelling for girls and Rhys for boys, with Reece given to about four times as many boys as girls.

The -leigh suffix seems to be losing its luster; several names in this category, including Kayleigh, Kyleigh and Ryleigh, peaked in popularity a few years back but have since lost quite a bit of ground.