Parents often find it difficult to find a baby that is hip without being overused. Some may also want to be one of the first to use a name that will end up becoming very sophisticated and popular in the future.
One way to be one of the first to find a naming trend is to spot a name that is rising on popularity charts but is not in last year's top 100 baby names. Children given these names (and their parents) are likely to be seen as trend setters. Interestingly, all of these names have been inspired by recent pop culture, which has caused their increase in popularity.
Baby Girl Names that Moved Up in Popularity in 2008
Each year the Social Security Administration tabulates and makes public the top 1000 baby names. These 1000 names make up approximately 75% of all social security card applications received in the United States that year.
The following names were not the most popular of the 1000 names from 2008, in fact none were even in the top 100. Rather these are the names that made the greatest leaps according to the Social Security Administration from 2007 to 2008. Each of these names went up at least 100 places. Following each name is the pop culture reference which may have contributed to its rise in popularity.
Cool Baby Girl Names of Actresses and Singers
The following baby names have been inspired by famous actresses or singers. Their rise in fame may have contributed to a parents using their names for their babies.
- Audrina – Audrina Patridge from The Hills.
- Danna – Mexican actress and singer, Danna Paola.
- Khloe – Keeping Up With The Kardashians Star, Khloe Kardashian
- Miley or Mylee – Pop singer and actress, Miley Cyrus
- Paisley – Country music artist, Brad Paisley.
- Rihanna – Recording artist and model, Rihanna.
Cool Celebrity Baby Girl Names
Fans not only like the talents of popular stars, but also the names they choose for their babies. Here's some names that rose to popularity when celebrities used them for their children.
- Lyric – Celebrity baby Lyric Benson, child of Robby Benson & Karla DeVito
- Valentina – Valentina Pinault, celebrity baby of Salma Hayak and French billionaire Francois-Henri Pinault.
Cool Baby Girls Named After Beautiful Women
Many parents find that names belonging to beautiful women become more attractive for their daughters. These names belong to rising models and one Miss Universe.
- Dayana – Miss Universe 2008, Dayana Mendoza.
- Jaslene – Jaslene Gonzalez, model and winner of Season 8 of America's Next Top Model.
- Kayden – Glamour model Kayden Kross.
Multimedia Inspired Cool Baby Girl Names
Baby names can be inspired by everything in the entertainment industry. Parents may be lead to a baby name by a recently popular movie, book or song.
- Delilah – Popular 2007 song Hey There Delilah by Plain White T's
- Lia – References to author's Brynjar Lia or Francesca Lia Block.
- Lilah or Lyla – See Delilah above. Also spelling variations of popular girl's name, Lila.
- Marlee, Marley or Marely –2008 film, Marley and Me
Other Pop Culture Cool Names
These recently popular baby names prove that anything made popular by the media can inspire a baby name.
- Emery – Possible reference to Ray Emery, former starting goaltender for the Ottawa Senators, who helped lead them to 2007 Stanley Cup win.
- Harper – Possible reference to Canada's Prime Minister, Stephen Harper.
- Jimena – Human rights group, JIMENA (Jews Indigenous to the Middle East and North Africa), established to advocate for Jewish refugees from the Middle East.
- London – Rise in trend of naming babies after cities.
Finding a baby name can be challenging. Spotting a baby name that is climbing the popularity charts is one way to spot a cool naming trend. Many popular baby names have come from recent pop culture and these names have yet to become overused.
For more baby name ideas, see:
Vintage Baby Girl Names and Name Meanings
Cool Nicknames for Classic and Popular Baby Girl Names.
Kara Gleghorn - Kara Gleghorn is freelance writer and stay at home mom of 3 currently residing in Rochester, NY. She has a B.S. from Penn State University ...
