Name In Trend: Bentley

In a blog about names that are in trend, you just have to talk about the trendiest boy name for the past 2 years: Bentley. It's popularity has risen because of MTV's show "Teen Mom", where one of the girls named Maci had a son and named him Bentley Cadence. But besides being a car name, does it actually have any roots as a proper human name?

Well apparently it does. It seems to be of Old English origin, used as a surname before becoming a first name, and it means "bent grass meadow". Nowadays though, most people will only associate it with the luxury car.

Here is how Bentley has performed in the boys chart:

Shocking, I know, but Bentley first appeared in the boys chart back in the 19th century! Apart from an unnoticed re-entry in the 1960s, it would take this name over 100 years to make an impression in the boys chart again. It re-entered back in 2007, and climbed to #937 in 2008, showing that parents were becoming open to naming their sons Bentley. This is a vital clue to know which names could become massively popular and trendy. A name like Carrot will not become popular if parents are not already open to the idea of that name on their kids, even if it is used on a reality TV show.
In 2009, the name became one of the trendiest names thanks to "Teen Mom" on MTV, shooting up to #518, and would continue boosting up the chart in 2010 by climbing over 400 spots up to #101!

The thing with trendy names, is that they tend to be short lived - take a look at Shaquille for example. Bentley managed to remain trendy for the 2nd year in a row, do you think that the name will continue to rise even when Maci and Bentley are no longer on the MTV show? Or do you think it'll plummet next year and fizzle out?

I'm gonna go with the former option and believe that the name has truly caught on with the masses, and will continue its ascention up the chart. Both Maci and Bentley were not in the show in 2010, apart from a reunion episode, which leads me to believe that the name has spread well beyond the fans of the show and is now well on to becoming the next Jayden. Do you agree with me?



If you do like the name, you could spell it: Bentlee, Bently, Bentleigh, Bentlie, Bentli, Bentlea, Byntley, Byntlie, Byntlee.

If you like the sound, but not the name, here are similar alternatives: Presley, Kinglsey, Kenley, Kentley, Finley, Tenley, Kinley Benny, Bento, Benzo.