How 2012’s Top Baby Names Compare with 1912’s Top Baby Names

If you had a baby born this year or are still in the middle of deciding on a name for your soon to be born baby, you might be interested in how today’s top names stack up to those from a century ago. I know I had a lot of fun looking through old names from the 1800s and early to mid 1900s when trying to decide on a name for my baby. In the end, it was an ancient Roman name that most moved me as I was writing a story about Pompeii at the time, but I found that looking into the past for ideas and inspiration was a great way to start when it came to sifting through so many different baby names.

First on the list of 2012’s most popular boy’s names in the United States is Jacob. Not too far out there really or trendy sounding. Quite refined and historical actually. What was the top baby name for a child born back in 1912? John. The rest of 2012’s list looks like this: Mason, William, Jayden, Noah, Michael, Ethan, Alexander, Aiden and Daniel takes the number 10 spot.

In 1912, the second most popular baby name according to the Social Security Administration was William followed by James, Robert, Joseph, George, Charles, Edward, Frank and Thomas at number 10.

Girl’s names in 1912 were decidedly different from those of today. We begin with Mary at number one whereas 2012’s top girl’s name was Sophia. The second most popular girl’s name in 1912 was Helen followed by Dorothy, Margaret, Ruth, Mildred, Anna, Elizabeth, Frances and Virginia was the 10th most popular name. Now in 2012 we have Isabella coming up at number two followed by Emma, Olivia, Ava, Emily, Abigail, Madison, Mia and Chloe at number 10.

Sources: http://www.hollywoodlife.com/2012/05/14/most-popular-baby-names-2012-list/
http://www.ssa.gov/oact/babynames/decades/names1910s.html