20 Names You're Gonna Love

I want to take a moment out and talk about the top names of the past decade.  Although the data hasn't been offically published on the Social Security Administration's website, the lovely Laura Wattenberg, or The Baby Name Wizard, has done the work and posted it on hers!  Without actually looking at numbers, here are the leading 10 names for the boys and the girls:

The Girls
1) Emily
2) Madison
3) Emma
4) Olivia
5) Hannah
6) Abigail
7) Isabella
8) Samantha
9) Elizabeth
10) Ashley

The Boys
1) Jacob
2) Michael
3) Joshua
4) Matthew
5) Daniel
6) Christopher
7) Andrew
8) Ethan
9) Joseph
10) William

I honestly do like all of these names.  I probably wouldn't use them because I have a bit of an obsession with using less common names, but when it comes to finding a good name that you know will be well liked, here's your list!  I have a few of these names on my possible middle names list because they are great names, but you know that in 6 years or so, if your child has one of these names, he or she will probably one of a few in his or her class alone.

Overall, these names are classics.  They are mainstays in the world of naming babies!  Why are these names so darn popular?  If I had to guess, its because each one is pleasant to the ear, none of them are really gender neutral (no, I don't consider Ashley a boys name anymore.  I couldn't even tell you the last person I knew who even considered the name for a boy!), and each of these names can transition from childhood to adulthood easily! 

For about 30 years now, around half of the names on these two lists have been in the top 10 of given names.  And those that are newer will surely be around for another decade or two to come!