Names Of The Year 2011

December is already here, and another year is almost over. The SSA will be soon starting to count all the baby names around the country, a list that is published every year in May.

Seeing that there's still 5 months to go, we might as well talk amongst ourselves about our own predictions, and keep things rolling. What were the biggest names of the year? Who will be #1?

For boys:

- I think Jacob will remain #1 yet again, but stiff competition should be starting to form just below it. I think 2011 will be the year this name will start to decline in popularity, but since it's so ahead of the others, it should be safe at the top. Let's hope it loses it's crown soon...

- For the top10, I believe William will continue to keep growing. Jayden might climb although I do think 2011 is the year the -adens will finally see a drop in populatiry.
- Michael will fall outside the top3 for the first time in many decades, let's rejoice! Ethan should decline too.
- I believe Mason will surge into the top5 this year, and will be a strong contender for #1 in years to come due to the Kardashian effect. Elijah will probably also join the top10, booting off Daniel and Anthony, although Aiden might struggle.
- Jackson and Liam will join the top20, and Jaxon and Jaxson will continue their ascent. Levi, Henry, Wyatt and Oliver will make big leaps.
- Joining the top100 will be Bentley and Asher for sure, with good chances of Grayson, Jace, Micah, Kayden, Giovanni, Ryder, Bryson and Easton joining them, although I suspect quite a few of them will be just outside. The ones that have multiple spellings in the ranking are probably gonna have less of an impact (Jayce, Greyson, Brycen, Kaden...).
- Making big leaps inside the top1000 will probably be Brantley, Rhys, Emmett, Kellan, Ezra, Milo, Finn, Kingsley, Luca, Declan, Desmond, Enzo, amongst many others.
- Debuts should include Flynn, Crosby, Maxton and perhaps Zeke, Kooper, Chevy, Kamdyn, Kiptyn and Baylor. We should probably see returns of certain names like Harvey, Oakley and Campbell.
- Unisex names should hold on strong for the most part, with Riley, Avery, Peyton, Skyler, Emery, London, Finley, Emerson remaining steady or even climbing. However a few others will probably start or continue to slip, such as Dakota, Alexis, Ariel, Sidney, Bailey, Jaylen, Dominique, Kendall. We might see debuts or returns for Shiloh, Presley, Aubrey, Milan and Kennedy.


For girls:

I don't usually focus too much on girls names', but some names I see making an impact are:

- Adele, most successful singer of the year
- Alaina, and its many spelling variants
- Aria, due to "Pretty Little Liars"
- Hadley & Piper - modern and gender ambiguous
- Ellie & Evie, ie nicknames are back on trend
- Pippa, perhaps the highest debut of the year?
- Kate
- Camila
- Ella, Bella, Stella... - ella names are still "in"
- Aubree, Farrah & Maci - "Teen Mom" has it's way of being trendy
- Mila
- Harper, was trendy before, now has the Beckham factor
- Quinn, as long as "Glee" is around, it will continue to climb
- Kinley & Tenley, these twins should keep on rising
- Adalyn
- Khloe & Kendall, those Kardashians know how to start a trend
- Isla
- Willow, set on trend by Pink
- Josephine, Elise, Eleanor, Penelope, Hazel, June... - old lady names are back in vogue
- Siri, heck might as well put this one in
- And to end it, I believe Sophia will replace Isabella at the top.


Now these are only my predictions, I don't have the ability to forsee things. Some I may be spot on, others less so. What do you guys think, agree or disagree?