Endangered Baby Names

Although she declared her independence as far back as the reign of Elizabeth I--Good Queen Bess, Bess now sounds less passé than Beth or Betsy.

Lucille and its alternate spelling Lucile are both popular in France, but in the US, Lucy rules with the more-antiquated sounding Lucille a distant second. Lucile fell off the Top 1000 more than 60 years ago and it's hard to imagine what might make this spelling preferable to the original. As with Jenifer, subtracting that letter doesn't add anything.

Unfortunate identification with an army of rats in the movie of the same name.

Much-used midcentury diminutive, now fallen far from favor even as a middle name.

A straightforward, down-to-earth nickname many Walters, from Whitman to Disney, have chosen to go by.

Noreen's in limbo, especially now that Nora has made a comeback.

This is the spelling that old-time film star Katharine Hepburn used, and it's still favored by fans wanting to reference her classic strength and beauty. But in general, it's losing ground to Katherine and even Ms. Hepburn's own favorite short form, Kate.

A name that took on a pronounced country twang via Nashville megastar Garth (born Troyal) Brooks.

A bit slight to put directly on the birth certificate, but Dom is a pleasant nickname for a boy or a girl.

A name that works until your daughter is, say, six.

Shawn is one name that's become less unisex and more distinctly male over time in all its spellings, given to only 14 baby girls and over 500 boys in the US in the most recent year counted. But at its peak in the early 1970s, it was a Top 200 baby name for girls in the US, given to nearly 2000 baby girls... and 12,000 boys in this spelling alone.

One of a number of single-syllable unisex B-names, Brett was first spotted as a female name in Hemingway's The Sun Also Rises, via the dashing and seductive Lady Brett Ashley, who was a captivating enough character to offer naming inspiration. It combines a pleasingly brisk, executive air with a measure of femininity.

Although Joan was the more popular name in the 20th century, it's the nickname Joanie that is likely to be revived first. Joan ranked as a Top 100 name from the mid '20s to the mid '60s, and the US is still Joan-ed out from that era. But sweet Joanie feels fresh — a sister to names like Sadie, Elsie, and Sylvie. It could have a future on the Top 1000 but for now, scoop up Joanie while it's undiscovered.

It's been shown that notable political figures often impact the use of their names, and the same can — sort of — be said about Bernie Sanders. His name increased in use by 47% between 2015 and 2016 (albeit, to a peak of only 21 baby boys given the name). By 2017, Bernie has decreased in usage by almost 60%.

A Leave It to Beaver/old comic-strip name, vacationing for years with the Griswolds in WallyWorld, but now back as WALL-E?

A relic of the midcentury Mandi-Sandi-Andi era.

See TERRY.

Marty is one of those Old Man nicknames that's just starting to sound cute again.

This sassy, spunky name was used for the mostly Irish jump-roping pigtailed girls of the thirties and forties -- and some Irish and Italian boys as well. Its most noted bearer was iconic country music singer Patsy Cline (born Virginia), and was sighted most recently in the Ab Fab movie. After reaching Number 52 in the late thirties, it dropped off the list completely in 1970--and we're not anticipating a return.