Modern Baby Names

If Erykah Badu can name her son Seven, why can't you name your daughter (or son) this? Eleven has recently gotten a lot of attention via the character on the TV show Stranger Things.

Part Ava, part Lynn, and part cousin of the stylish Evelyn and Adeline, Avalynn is a recent 2014 entrant to the US Top 1000. But sometimes when a name is trying hard to have everything, it doesn't really impress. Avalyn is one spelling variation.

The sacred syllable of Buddhism, used when meditating. This short, sweet and spiritual choice has taken off in the last twenty years, and is in regular, though not highly popular, use in the US.

With Crew having entered the Top 1000 in 2010, it was only a matter of time before variants started popping up.

This extra-N variation matches up with the current preferred spellings of Oaklynn, Raelynn, and Adalynn, however it has always been outranked by popular Brooklyn. Though both spellings have trended downwards since their peak in 2011, Brooklyn maintains its place in the US Top 100, while Brooklynn lags behind in the #300s.

There's something about the K initial that modern parents just can't resist and Kruz is a trendy reboot of the already very cool Cruz. Derived from the Spanish word for "cross", Kruz could be included in the new generation of Christian word names with a twist, joining Kross, Tru, Zyon, and Chozen on future class rosters. Given to around 170 boys in a recent year, the traditional spelling is used nearly six times as often.

Lexington is trending as a unisex name, used just about evenly for the genders. For Americans, it's got a patriotic feel, given the importance of Lexington, Massachusetts in the Revolutionary War. Lexington, Kentucky, in horse country, is another well-known city with the name. Short form Lex is user friendly.

With Henley and Kinsley two of the most popular new ley-ending baby names for girls, why not Hensley? We can think of several reasons, but if you like this style of name, Hensley is as attractive as any.

This name from the Shona language is a new entrant to the Top 1000 in the US.

Icelyn and its more popular sister Icelynn have been among the fastest-rising girls' names in the US in recent years.

A trendy choice that takes a little from Riley and a little from Kayleigh, to create the rather appealing meaning, "beam of light in the meadow".

Jianna was one of the fastest-rising names of 2020 after the deaths of Kobe and Gianna Bryant. It continued to rise in 2021.

This attempt to masculinize Jules has made its way into the Top 1000. We recommend using the more traditional spelling, as this one will likely appear dated in a few years' time.

Luxury baby name associated with Jacques Cartier's eponymous jewelry company.

There is much disagreement about the origin, meaning, or even existence of this name. Some sources cite Jesiah as the name of several minor Biblical figures, others say it's a variation of Josiah, still others call it a modern conflation of Josiah and Jesse.

The K-spelling of Carter has been in the boys' Top 1000 since 2005. In 2014, Karter cracked the girls' Top 1000, too. Karter joins the plethora of surnames turned boys' names that are now entering the world of girls' names as well. This particular one also has the trendy Kardashian-Esque "K" beginning. The Carter spelling entered the Top 1000 for girls around the same time but currently sits higher up in the charts, hovering just around the Top 500.

Divorces Aspen from its nature and ski resort associations. Aspyn first broke into the Top 1000 in 2020.