When it comes to baby name trends, every new year promises to be more interesting than the last! I'm sure 2014 will "deliver" some highly original baby name choices.
Whether you're expecting a baby, planning for one in the near future, or (like me!) you always love following baby name news, check out these rising baby name trends for 2014:
- Royal baby-inspired names - Thanks to Prince William and Kate Middleton's little bundle of joy, there will surely be some more little George's running around on both sides of the pond. But I suspect that the related girls' name Georgia and the boys' name Louis (one of little Prince George's middle names) will see even bigger bumps this year than the name George.
- Direction-inspired names - Few people will venture into "North West" territory and shameless copy Kim and Kanye's baby name choice. But I believe parents-to-be will be increasingly drawn to compass-inspired names such as Easton and Weston. (Look -- one of the first baby names of 2014 is a little one named Easton born in Alaska, as NameCandy reports!) Kourtney Kardashian's son's name, Mason, rocked our world four years ago and quickly topped boy name lists. Her little sister Kim's baby name pick is sure to make a mark on the world of baby names.
- Tragedy-inspired names - Believe it or not, bad news appears to influence our subconscious when it comes to choosing baby names. For example, the New York Times reports that Hurricane Katrina might have contributed to the 9 percent bump in "K" baby names in the years right after the storm. Last year's top trending story on Google was that of actor Paul Walker's death in a fiery car crash. Paul may be too traditional to see a spike on baby name charts, but Walker -- and other hearty "W" names with hipster appeal, such as Walter, Walden, Wallace, and Wes -- are likely to climb the charts.
- New spins on celebrity baby names - Admit it -- we all occasionally indulge in stalking new Hollywood baby names. While nabbing a name directly from the pages of People or Us Weekly is completely acceptable in this day and age (IMO!), most moms-to-be won't outwardly admit to Hollywood's influence (only 2% of moms in our baby-name poll say they followed a celebrity trend). BUT, the proof is in the pudding: Many new moms like celebrity-ish baby names. Again, take a look at the first babies born in 2014: names like Gwineth, Vivianna, and Brooklyn remind us of the names (or baby names) of some big stars (cough, cough... Gwyneth, Brangelina, and the Beckhams... cough). OWN IT! Hollywood does inspire some of our name choices, and that is OK. :)
I guess that's a good note to end on: OWN your baby name choice, whatever it may be and wherever it may come from.
Check out our other baby name resources! Happy 2014!
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