Choosing a name for your new baby is an exciting, if sometimes stressful, part of becoming a new parent - after all, they’ll be hearing it on the daily for the rest of their lives! Names may also have more importance than we realise.
The New Yorker wrote an interesting article about studies done over the decades exploring the effects of names.
While no real consensus was reached, and it’s extremely unlikely the name you choose has the power to derail your bubs life, some suggested names can influence everything from our grades at school to our choice of profession, where we live, and whom we marry.
If you’re stuck for inspiration, here’s our round-up of the names predicted by
Nameberry, the go-to site for baby name inspo, trend data (and a giggle with their not-so-hot lists) to be on this year’s popular baby names lists.
Multicultural names
First cab off the rank is a predicted rise in “global names” – Nameberry predicting the increasingly global, multicultural nature of the world is influencing the names we choose for our babies. Here’s their top ten multiculturally influenced picks:
- Acacius
- Aroha
- Cyrene
- Jedda
- Kiran
- Lautaro
- Lior
- Niabi
- Sena
- Walken
Eastern influences
As popular as biblical names have been in earlier years, names related to Eastern religions and non-European mythology are tipped to be the next big thing. The rising popularity is likely due to the wider uptake of Eastern practices including yoga, meditation, and non-traditional spiritualism.
- Asherah
- Bodhi
- Kali
- Lakshmi
- Manu
- Osiris
- Raiden
- Rama
- Tanith
- Zen
Nonbinary names
As we become increasingly gender neutral and stereotype free in everything from work roles to how we raise our children (no more pink for girls and blue for boys!) there is likely to be a rise in non -gender specific names – a trend not a dissimilar from previous years penchant for giving girls traditionally male names. The predictions for the most popular picks with parents?
- Briar
- Campbell
- Finley
- Journey
- Justice
- Laken
- Revel
- Robin
- Royal
- Story
Softer colour inspired names
Forget the vibrant Poppy’s and Scarlett’s of previous years, babies born in 2019 are more likely to sport the moniker of a more muted hue – and Nameberry predicts a bump in Crayola names for boys. The colour names that top their popularity list?
Rare gems
Forget the girls being top of the roll call when it comes to jewel based names, this year also includes plenty of picks for the boys. Here are the jewel-inspired names likely to be in heavy rotation for 2019:
- Amethyst
- Emerald
- Garnet
- Jasper
- Jet
- Onyx
- Opal
- Peridot
- Sapphire
- Topaz
Keeping it short
While earlier years saw plenty of four letter names on their what’s hot lists, this year, Nameberry is expecting more three letter monikers hitting the what’s hot lists – perhaps influenced for our love all minimalism and anything zippy!
- Hal
- Ida
- Jem
- Kit
- Koa
- Liv
- Lux
- Rex
- Rio
- Van
Celebrity surname-names
While celebs have always influenced what names become popular – parents either going with their first name or the names chosen by celeb parents for their babies, this year’s trend is a little bit different - celebrity surnames for girls and boys. Not convinced? There’s actually some great choices inspired by this trend:
- Beckham
- Bowie
- Ellington
- Hendrix
- Jolie
- Ledger
- Lennon
- Lennox
- Monroe
- Wilder
Whatever name you go with, always remember these tricks: say their name out loud in full – sometimes the combo with a surname creates an unfortunate full name that’ll see them teased for years to come.
Tricky spelling or overly lengthy names can also make learning to write and spell challenging (though this shouldn’t be a deal breaker if you really love the name!)
See the results