Middle Names

Paige is more name, and less word than the occupational Page. Paige is also sleek and sophisticated a la Brooke and Blair and reached as high as Number 47 in 2003, when there was a very popular television show, Trading Spaces, hosted by the energetic Paige Davis.

The Reid spelling is the most popular by half, probably because it feels more like a name than Reed, which looks more like a word. It's used occasionally for girls but this name is firmly in the boys' camp.

Rose is derived from the Latin rosa, which referred to the flower. There is also evidence to suggest it was a Norman variation of the Germanic name Hrodohaidis, meaning "famous type," and also Hros, "horse". In Old English it was translated as Roese and Rohese.

Sawyer is one of the top unisex names, used for their daughters by such parents as Sara Gilbert, co-host of The Talk and former actress on Roseanne, currently on The Conners.

One of the hot two-syllable T names of the nineties (along with Tyler, Trevor, and Taylor), and well represented on soap operas; Tanner is still widely used, but its popularity is declining.

Though Tate is used almost exclusively for boys, we can see Tate as a stronger surname alternative to Kate or a clipped form of Tatum.

Teal is one of the prettiest and most straightforward of the new color names -- an ideal middle name choice.

When Marion Michael Morrison became John Wayne around 1930, his last name took on an air of cowboy cool that lasted about thirty years, but by now it's strictly a dad or granddad name.