So You Think You Can Dance in Canada - Boys' names

The 3rd installment of So You Think You Can Dance - Canada started a few weeks ago, and one thing that captivated were some of the guy's names on there. The girls names weren't particularly interesting for the most part, so I chose to talk about the boys instead.

So these are the names of the male contestants:

Jonathan
Jesse
Jeff
Jera
Shavar
Edgar
Denys
Sebastian
Mackenzie
Yonni
Hani

Now I know Jonathan, Jesse, Jeff, Sebastian and Edgar aren't particularly interesting names for boys, I'm thinking most of you have heard of them, and they're even spelled correctly.

Name In Trend: Rhys

Rhys is a name that has been very popular in the last few years, especially in name blogs, and is currently a very trendy name. It is pronounced just like Reece and Reese, but not as popular as those two names. It is of Welsh origin, and means "enthusiasm".

Both Reese and Reece have been around since the 19th century, with Reese being in the top1000 since its debut, whilst Reece has been in and out, but is currently the most popular spelling for boys.

However, whilst Rhys is the least common spelling of the same name in the top1000, it is the only one that has been climbing steadily the past few years, and it won't be long until it dethrones the other 2 spellings.

Here is how Rhys has performed so far:

Autumn Names for Boys

Well it's September 21st, and Autumn is now with us. There are many names one can associate with Summer, but it seems there are fewer names tied with the fall season - wrong!

First of all, the name Autumn is the most popular season name, albeit for girls only, even though for me it sounds boy-ish. However, there are alternatives for boys if you don't wanna risk it.

You could start by looking up the name Autumn in other languages: Automne, Outono, Ruduo, Syksy, Haust, Podzim, Autunno. All of these sound exotic and fresh, and perfectly usable on a boy.
And if months like May and August can be used as names, why not go with September, October or November? All three are pretty usable as names, especially the latter names, with cute nicknames such as Toby, Tober, Ember, Nove, Novie, Octo, Octie, Sep. None of these month names are popular at all, so they haven't been given a gender yet - go grab them for your boys while the girls haven't put their hands on them.

Name In Spotlight: Azure

The name Azure is actually a color, a type of "blue". It has yet to enter the boys popularity chart, but it is a name that I've heard more and more often recently. With the name Blue rising in popularity, albeit not commonly used, I don't see why names associated with this color can't increase in popularity too.

Azure is the perfect alternative if you don't want your son's name to be directly associated with a color, since it is rarely mentioned or heard anywhere. It's actually not my favorite shade of "blue", but it has a pleasant sound, pronounced "ay-zhoor", and it just sticks in your head like a breeze of the sea that stimulates your senses. Hopefully soon, there'll be a baby boy named Azure by a big celebrity, and it'll explode in popularity. I'm definitely on board with it.

Month Names

Month names have been around since the dawn of time. Some are more popular than others, some are rising in popularity, whilst others are falling. But what I don't understand is the reason why August is the only month name considered to be masculine?

Names like May and June have charted for boys in the past century, they just got smuthered by the popularity of those names on girls. Personally, I think month names are gender neutral, there's nothing wrong with a boy named February, it doesn't scream girl to me. In fact, some month names actually seem to lean on the manly side to me.

Name In Spotlight: Zenith

Zenith is of arabic origin, and means "the very top, the highest point". It is also a term used in geography to refer to the highest point in the sky directly above a particular location. Such a great meaning don't you think?

Zenith has yet to crack the top1000 for boys, but I can see it catching on in the future since nature/earthly names seem to be rising in popularity. Unfortunately there are no celebrity babies that are named Zenith until now, so they name remains relatively unknown.

If sharing the name Zenith with a brand of watches is too much for you to handle, here are some great alternatives: Zen, Zeenat, Zephyr, Zanti, Zammit, Zygmund. Interesting choices, and definitely unique.

So what do you guys think of the name? Too out there?

Name In Trend: Journey

The name Journey is of American origin, and means exactly that, a "journey from some place to another, or a trip". It is a modern invention, and has been a trendy name for girls in the past few years. I could only find one celebrity baby named Journey, and that is Jenna Jameson's son, proving that it has unisex potential, like most modern names.

Here is the popularity ranking of Journey for girls:

Name In Trend: Karter

Karter is a modern respelling of the name Carter, which is of English origin, and means "one who transports goods".

I must say I'm not a fan of the name Carter, but I find Karter more appealing (I like "K" names). Whilst the name Carter has been around since the 19th century, Karter has only recently made a big splash in the boys popularity ranking.

Here is how the name Karter has performed:

Name In Spotlight: Shiloh

Shiloh is of Hebrew origin and means "his gift". Associated as a male name in the past, Shiloh has gained attention as a female name in recent years since it's the name of Angelina Jolie's daughter. However, for me this is one of those names that I could see gaining popularity on boys, if the right opportunity came - like a big star with that name, or a tv character. For some reason, "oh" ending names just scream masculine to me, and that applies to Juno too.

There is one male celebrity that has this name, Shiloh Fernandez.

TV series and their influence on names

We all know how TV and popular series/shows can influence how a name performs. However, I have to vent at TV series constantly giving girls unisex or even manly names, and boys always getting the same old boring names that have been popular since Christ was born...

Grey's Anatomy is one of the main culprits, by naming one of the most popular female characters Addison - arguably one of the reasons the name started to be associated with girls. We all know the lead female character, Meredith, has a boys name, but that has been lost to the girls a long time ago. Addison had a fighting chance, had. Other female characters are: Izzie (Isobel), Lexie, Reed (also a boys name), Callie (Calliope), Sloan (another boy name), Teddy (and another one), and of course the nazi-surgeon commonly called by her surname Bailey - surely doesn't help the boys. The males of course all have typical boy names that everyone is bored of: Derek, Richard, Alex, George, Charles, Jackson - a snoozefest.