Every year, the most popular baby names list is announced, and I think most parents prefer to never see their child's name turn up there. It might be because they want to "own" that name and be individual, or they are thinking about confusion in the classroom in later years. I personally know about 117 Jennifers; it was clearly a top name in the '70s.
While I didn't name my kids to stand out, I didn't specifically choose names I hoped would be super popular either. I'm a Kathy; growing up in the '60s and '70s there were always more than a few of us, even if some of them spelled it incorrectly with a "C". As for my husband, I think every second guy my age that I know has his name (Steve), including my own brother. Steve has also been the name of choice for a monkey in both the movie Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs, as well as in the Spot The Dog books, and even the titular hedge in the movie Over the Hedge. My kids giggle at the thought of a newborn baby named Steve. "This is my new baby, STEVE." (Come on, that's funny.)
The top names in Canada for 2013 this year are Emma and Carter, according to Canadian Living Magazine. Parents who have chosen these names will be well-advised to order labels with their last initial tacked on, speaking from experience. I don't see any real surprises in the list (below); while we run across the occasional unusual name, Canadians are fairly traditionalist.
Celebrities are scorned when they use unusual names (Apple, Blue Ivy, and Moon Unit) and lauded when they go with traditional names. Two of the most famous babies born this year were William and Catherine's Prince George (which makes Canadians giggle, particularly those in Northern BC), and Kim and Kanye's new reality production, North. I wish others had followed the pseudo-metaphor of the name and phrase North West. Halle Berry couldn't have gone with either Straw or Blue? It would have killed Toni Braxton to go with Hicks? (Only new moms will appreciate that one.) For the record, my kids are Victoria, Alexander, Bridget, and Nicholas. Not that Penny Buckworth wouldn't have been fun.
Top 10 Baby Names of 2013 (Canadian Living Magazine)
Girls
- Emma
- Hailey
- Isabella
- Jada
- Matilda
- Maya
- Olivia
- Scarlett
Boys
- Carter
- Christopher
- Hunter
- Joseph
- Joshua
- Matthew
- Michael
- William
This article was originally run in the Metro News.
Follow Kathy (she's the only Kathy Buckworth in the world, so far) at @KathyBuckworth and visit www.kathybuckworth.com Kathy is the Chief Family Advisor for Presidents Choice Financial (www.pcfinancial.ca)