Hubby's List

Almost like a fusion between vintage Audrey, bubbly Ruby, and unisex Avery, Aubrey has been a popular choice for girls since the mid 2000’s.

Brianna's popularity in the US came later than father name Brian's, peaking in the 1990s, two decades after Brian's Top 10 reign of the 1970s.

Brooke has long projected an aura of sleek sophistication, and can also be seen as a stylish water name.

Extreme makeover: Brooklyn has gone from jokey Borough Boy name in the 1990s to a leading girls' name starting with B. The status of New York's Brooklyn as hipster heaven is ironic as few bona fide Brooklyn hipsters would choose this name.

Elena is at its most popular point ever in the US, thanks to its cross-cultural appeal and the overall popularity of El- names. It's more international than Ellen or Eleanor, but still accessible.

A newly successful name for girls, which, like Brayden and Caden, used to be strictly for the boys. Young Heroes and now Nashville star Hayden Panettiere planted it in the girls' camp.

Heidi became known — and popular — via the 1880 eponymous children's classic by Swiss writer Johanna Spyri and, despite decades of American Heidis of all sizes, shapes, and personalities, the name seems permanently tethered to that spunky little girl on the Alpine mountaintop in the book and Shirley Temple movie.

This spelling of Jillian is now much more popular than the original, maybe because the G version invites pronunciation problems.

Johanna is the version of this name used in Holland, Germany, and Scandinavia. The extra h makes Johanna a slightly more dignified version of Joanna.

Originally used for children baptized in holy water from the river Jordan, it became one of the leading androgynous names of the nineties. As the balance tips toward the boys' side, it's slipping on the girls' popularity chart. Alternate spelling Jordyn is now more popular for girls.

Long common in Europe, the elegant and regal Juliana, also spelled with two n's, has invaded these shores, in tandem with the more classic Julia. Together with Julian, the name derives from Julius, a Roman family name. Its origin is shrouded in history, but possible roots include Latin iuvenis, meaning "youthfu"; Greek ioulos, meaning "downy-bearded"; or Jovis, a form of Jupiter, which means "sky father".

One of the most romantic names, the lovely and stylish Juliet seems finally to have shaken off her limiting link to Romeo. In Shakespeare's play, it was Juliet who said "What's in a name?"

Yesterday's hottie, today's mom name. It derives from several English place names and may mean "Cenel's island", from the Old English name Cenel "fierce".

Kiley is one of the more reasonable of the Kylie variations, which also include Kilea, Kilee, Kileigh, Kili, Kilie, Kylee, Kyley, Kyli, ad infinitum. Despite its similarity to the popular Riley, the high ranking Kylie will ensure that this choice comes with spelling confusion. For our part, we'd rather people stuck with the original Kylie, especially seeing as that is a Noongar Aboriginal word.

Kimberly's heyday was in the 1960s and 70s, when it ranked among the Top 10. While it hasn't been stylish for decades, it's evidenced more staying power than some former hot girl names, remaining among the Top 300 girl names in the US, where it's stood for 70 years.

Though such cognates of Kira as Keira, Kyra, and Ciara are increasingly popular throughout Europe and in the U.S., this Cyrus relative has a different root. As with all the many variations of this appealing name, there is often confusion around spelling and pronunciation -- does the first syllable rhyme with ear or eye?

Laura is a hauntingly evocative perennial, never trendy, never dated, feminine without being fussy, with literary links stretching back to Dante. All this makes Laura a more solid choice than any of its more decorative counterparts and one of the most classic girl names starting with L.

Lauren was derived from Laurence, an English name from the Roman family name Laurentius, meaning "from Laurentum." Laurentum, an ancient Italian city, got its name from the Latin word laurus, meaning "bay laurel."