The Most Popular Arabic Names in the US in 2014

Have you ever really taken a look at the names in the United State's Social Security Administration's Top 1000 most popular names chart? I mean, have you really looked at it?  I decided to fish a little bit and I found a ton of Arabic names swimming right at me. Had I really never noticed these names before? Sure, I'm not an ethnic match for any of them but not all of them stand out as foreign.

Just take a look at the female names! Many of them aren't obviously Arabic and they are no doubt being used on girls of a variety of races all across the country. For example, the highest ranking name is Layla at #29 and it has so many variants that are very fashionable today such as Lyla, Laila, Lila, Leila and Lilah which all rank within the Top 1000.  Then there's the Aaliyah sisters with a similar story.

Let's start with the male names. There are four spellings of Muhammad and also variants like Ahmad that rank in the Top 1000. Somehow, though, the masculine names strike me as more ethnic and foreign-sounding than any of the female names do.  Why do you think that could be? Take a look:

Boys: Amir #212 Omar #214 Ali #333 Malik #376 Muhammad #399 Mohamed #427 Ibrahim #455 Khalil #465 Mohammed #498 Ahmed #549 Nasir #551 Yahir #564 Ayaan #570 Ahmad #571 Mohammad #588 Yusuf #589 Rayan #606 Hamza #620 Abdullah #634 Omari #707 Kareem #751 Samir #757 Hassan #759 Jamal #764 Yousef #766 Jamir #820 Rashad #913 Mustafa #916 Ameer #940 Khalid #953 Ayan #991

Girls: Layla #29 Aaliyah #45 Lyla #140 Laila #149 Aliyah #168 Lila #183 Alina #192 Leila #241 Nyla #301 Lilah #312 Fatima #328 Amina #408 Zara #422 Aleah #423 Nylah#430 Imani #503 Zariah #535 Aisha#559 Mariam #568 Maryam #597 Amani #647 Alia #729 Farrah #759 Yamileth #794 Zaria #860 Aliya #865 Salma#878 Yasmin #904 Yaritza #992

The feminine names are all so beautiful. They have a certain elegance about them that no doubt is the reason they are so appealing cross-culturally.

What do you think of this list? Have I missed any? Share your favorites in the comments below!

The Latinate Boys of 2014: Spanish, Italian and Portuguese Names in the Top 1000

Leonardo da Vinci

There is a very large Latin presence in the United States these days. Did you know that there are several Spanish, Italian and Portuguese names for boys that rank within the Top 1000 most popular names?

My favorite of the bunch is listed as the "Italian, Spanish and Portuguese form of Leonard" on Behind the Name. Leonardo fits all three origin categories with ease and yet it is familiar enough to English ears that it could be considered for American boys who do not have Latin origins. The part-Italian Leonardo DiCaprio has helped make the name more mainstream in America. Interestingly, his name was chosen when his pregnant mother felt him kick for the first time while his parents were viewing a painting by Leonardo da Vinci.

Leonardo isn't the only name that works across all three of these cultures though.  Below are all of the Latinate names and their popularity rank for the year 2014 in the US.

Let's take a look at the first half of the Top 1000 first:

Angel #67                                         Jose #76 Juan #98 Luis #99 Mateo #106 Jesus #111 Leonardo  #114 Santiago #115 Carlos #117 Giovanni #125 Diego #129 Antonio #139 Miguel #146 Alejandro #157 Luca #185 Jorge #207 Javier #216 Andres #222 Lorenzo #227 Francisco #232 Emiliano #254 Ricardo #256 Eduardo #261 Fernando #263 Manuel #265 Josue #269 Mario #270 Cristian #273 Cesar #279

Emilio #280 Cruz #290 Rafael #293 Sergio #307 Marco #308 Angelo #315 Fabian #325 Joaquin #326 Romeo #341 Roberto #343 Maximiliano #344 Pedro #354 Enzo #369 Adan #373 Matteo #375 Thiago #390 Esteban #392 Pablo #396 Armando #400 Gerardo #402 Marcos #404 Enrique #414 Raul #423 Leonel #430 Hugo #438 Julio #452 Jaime #468 Gustavo #482 Rodrigo #488

Within the Top 500, there are many very handsome, strong and stylish names for boys. Even though these are all of Spanish, Italian or Portuguese origin, some are no doubt given to boys who do not have those ancestries. For example, I could see a blond, blue-eyed boy sporting the names Luca, Cruz or Hugo these days.  It would be inaccurate to claim that all of these Latinate names belong only to those with the corresponding heritage. Do you know anyone with these names?

Here are the names in the second half of the Top 1000 chart in the US for 2014:

Matias #503                                     Alberto #513 Gianni #515 Arturo #518 Alfredo #524 Alonzo #525 Arlo #539 Isaias #547 Neymar #548 Luciano #568 Ezequiel #569 Mauricio #577 Matthias #580 Mathias #582 Salvador #600 Lucian #608 Alessandro #623 Santino #632 Aldo #645 Ramon #647 Ernesto #651 Carmelo #653 Tomas #658 Guillermo #678 Alonso #708 Felipe #713 Lucca #740 Marcelo #741 Vicente #744 Aron #745

Ulises #749 Jadiel #756 Valentino #765 Giovani #769 Rogelio #780 Leandro #784 Vincenzo #812 Franco #817 Giancarlo #823 Alfonso #849 Jairo #865 Crisiano #872 Agustin #879 Rey #884 Santana #887 Ramiro #890 Salvatore #899 Rolando #905 Santos #909 Jovani #920 Maximo #921 Alvaro #922 Jovanni #943 Rodolfo #945 Eliseo #952 Camilo #962 Efrain #963 Deangelo #968 Giovanny #969 Dario #971 Osvaldo #989

While most of these names are still very handsome, strong and stylish, they are also a bit more on the unusual side than the names at the top of the charts.  The one name that stands out in this bunch is Arlo. It is a Spanish name but it has been climbing the charts rapidly in the last couple years which indicates that more than just Spanish boys are being given the name. Do you have any favorites in this bunch?

Unless I missed any, that makes 119 Spanish, Italian or Portuguese names for boys within the Top 1000! Which names do you love, which are you not keen on?

Uncommon Alternatives to the Top 10 Girls' Names

As you may know, here in the US the Social Security Administration tallies up the names of all the babies born within a year and reveals which names were most popular. While there are clearly thousands of parents who are happy using popular names, there are also parents who would rather avoid them.

For those parents who may secretly like the sound of the top names but hate their popularity, I've created a list of alternative options to the Top 10 names for girls.

The names may be similar in sound, syllables, initial letter, meaning, origin or a combination of those. None of the alternate names below rank on the SSA's Top 1000 most popular names chart in 2014.

1, Emma ---> Amabel
The rare medieval name Amabel maintains a sound similar to Emma at the start of the name but it also offers the trendy "bel" sound at the end. It does all of this while still being an unusual name and a cool alternative to the popular Emma.  I can never believe that this lovely precursor to Annabelle can remain so unused. Amabel was only given to 5 baby girls in 2014 which is as opposite in popularity as you can get compared to the #1 name Emma.  Other options: Alma, Jemma, Amelina, Esme 

2. Olivia ---> Octavia
These two names can easily be alternatives for each other sound-wise. They both start with O  and end with -via.  As far as nicknames go, these are also easily swapped: Liv and Tave or Livia and Tavia. If Olivia is too popular for you, try the always rare yet very familiar Octavia.  It was only given to 69 baby girls in 2014 which is very low compared to Olivia's nearly 20,000 births. Other options: Olympia, Vianna, Ophelia, Alba

3. Sophia ---> Seraphina 
Seraphina is a great alternative to Sophia in terms of sound. Just like Amabel and Octavia above, Seraphina is a name that feels like it should have plenty of usage but it just doesn't. Except for 6 recorded births in 1916, Seraphina has only been around recently. It is gaining a bit of usage but still only received 175 births in 2014. It is pretty and unusual which is a great contrast to the popular Sophia.  Other options: Sonya, Sophronia, Delphina, Sapphira

4. Isabella ---> Isadora 
Instead of focusing on finding an alternate name that shares the "bella" sound, I thought we'd focus on the beautiful "Isa" sound instead. The best option, of course, is the rare Isadora. Isadora has been around in the US since 1880 with regular usage except for a brief hiatus from 1958-1968. It's gained some momentum since then, receiving 167 births in 2014 but it is still far from ranking in the Top 1000.  Other options: Bellamy, Isabeau, Elizabella, Sable

5. Ava ---> Aviva
This interesting Hebrew name means "spring" and feels like a very refreshing alternative to the popular Ava. It maintains the same letters and sounds but adds a syllable which gives it a unique and cool vibe.  Aviva has been around since 1935 in the US but it has never been popular. With 94 births in 2014, this rare gem is an excellent choice! Other options: Aveline, Maeva, Evadne, Geneva

6. Mia ---> Pia
There aren't very many names that start or end with -mia. Finding a decent sound-alike name wasn't easy until I dropped the letter M and found rhyming name Pia. It is a Late Roman name that comes from the male name Pius and has actually been around in the US since 1908. In 2014, there were 71 girls given the name. It would be a lovely and unique alternative to Mia. Other options: Melia, Noemia, Mina, Magnolia

7. Emily ---> Romilly 
If you're searching for something that sounds like Emily but is the opposite when it comes to popularity, Romilly is the name for you. With the ending of both names being identical, you really only exchange the E for the Ro but you get a very unique name. How unique? Well, Romilly has only been used in the US since 2013 for a total of 12 babies on record ever being given the name. Other options: Kirrily, Milani, Camellia, Amberly

8. Abigail ---> Abilene
Abigail may be popular but it has a unique sound all to itself. There are no other names that offer "gail" that I could find and only a handful of names starting with "Abi-". One solution is to find a less common biblical girls' name, another is to find something that simply sounds similar. In this case, you get a two for one deal with the rare, Hebrew name Abilene. Used briefly in the New Testament, Abilene means "grass" and has only been regularly used in the US since 1987. It was given to 48 girls in 2014. Other options: Gaia, Aberdeen, Fabiana, Esther

9. Madison ---> Madigan
If you're a fan of the nickname Maddie, Madison and Madeline aren't the only options. An unusual and interesting option is Madigan. It is very similar in sound to Madison but it isn't nearly as popular. It has been used in the US since 1992 with a high peak of 67 births in 2002. Now in 2014, it was only given to 15 girls. It's a cool, spunky alternative to the popular Madison.  Other options: Madelief, Madelena, Maude, Matilde

10. Charlotte ---> Harriet
The regal name Charlotte may rank at number 10 in 2014 but it seems posed to climb even higher, possibly even hitting number one in the coming years. Harriet has been around since 1880 with a real heyday during the '20s and '30s. It left the Top 1000 in 1971 and has been uncommon ever since. In the past two years, 127 girls were given the name Harriet which would be a lovely alternative name to Charlotte.  Other options: Arlette, Charlize, Liesel, Lottie

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What do you think of my uncommon alternatives to these popular girl names?  Don't forget to check out the alternate names I chose for boys too!

Uncommon Alternatives to the Top 10 Boys' Names

As you may know, here in the US the Social Security Administration tallies up the names of all the babies born within a year and reveals which names were most popular. While there are clearly thousands of parents who are happy using popular names, there are also parents who would rather avoid them.

For those parents who may secretly like the sound of the top names but hate their popularity, I've created a list of alternative options to the Top 10 names for boys. The names may be similar in sound, syllables, initial letter, meaning, origin or a combination of those. None of the alternate names below rank on the SSA's Top 1000 most popular names chart in 2014.

1. Noah ---> Nahum
Nahum is the best alternative to Noah because it is also a biblical Hebrew name and it has a similar meaning. Noah means "rest, comfort" and Nahum means "comforter". It starts with the same letter, has the same number of syllables and they're both very vowel heavy. While Noah ranked at #1, Nahum sits nicely at #2076. Perfectly suitable to take Noah's place!  Other options: Noam, Enoch, Jonah, Nolan

2. Liam ---> Calum
Calum is a fun choice because it has the same ending sound as Liam and they both have Celtic roots with Liam being Irish and Calum being Scottish. Calum is a form of Columba, a Latin, saintly name meaning "dove". While Calum ranks down at #2452 last year, it does have a slightly more popular brother, Callum, that ranks at #729. Both are still much less popular than Liam at #2!  Other options: Alec, Leeland, Noam, Willem

3. Mason ---> Pierson
Mason is an occupational surname that refers to a stoneworker. What better alternative than a surname name referring to a rock? Pierson comes from the medieval name Piers which is a variant of Peter. Both of these names end with -son and they both come from Old French roots. It's cool and unusual and the perfect uncommon alternative since it ranked way down at #1301 in 2014. Other options: Cason, Colson, Stetson, Thatcher

4. Jacob ---> Javan
Jacob was the #1 name for many years only to begin its descent in 2013 when Noah took over. Javan has never even cracked the Top 1000, receiving only 52 births in 2014. Both 5-letter J-names are Hebrew but clearly have opposite popularities which makes Javan an interesting alternative to Jacob. Other options: Coby, Israel, Jaime, Séamus

5. William ---> Bertram
This was a tough choice. In the end, Bertram has similar, appealing qualities to William. Both names are derived from Germanic elements and both end with -am. While William has Will, Bertram has Bert. While Bert isn't as fashionable as Will at the moment, there's potential for it to come back and rank as well as it did in the 1920s. With barely 7 births last year, I find Bertram a handsome and truly rare alternative. Other options: Alaric, Edmund, Luther, Wilson

6. Ethan ---> Japheth
These two names take us from a popular biblical name to a rare one. Ethan may rank at #6 now but it wasn't always popular. It wasn't even regularly used in the US until 1911. Ethan gradually increased in usage through the 1970s until it exploded onto the scene in 1989 and zoomed up the charts, ranking as high as #2 in 2009 and 2010. Japheth was unheard of until 1970 and has slowly gained a handful of usage today with 43 births in 2014. Could it follow Ethan's pattern and someday be discovered in a big way?  Other options: Eben, Lathan, Ephraim, Irah

7. Michael ---> Micaiah
These two biblical names sound similar enough to swap and still keep everyone happy. Michael has been hugely popular for a very long time. There are Mikes everywhere. However, Micaiah  is relatively obscure. It has only been in use in the US since 1973. 2014 was its best year yet with 133 male births and a rank of #1311. There were also 41 female births.  Other options: Melchoir, Mischa, Mitchell, Malcolm

8. Alexander --->  Lysander
Alexander is a big, strong Greek name that has been used very well all around the world. Lysander is also a Greek name but it has a more tame and whimsical feel to it. Both end with "ander" which makes the rare Lysander a good alternative to the popular Alexander. It only had 43 male births in 2014 for a low, low ranking of #2764. Are you sold yet? Other options: Evander, Ferdinand, Constantine, Augustus

9. James ---> Ramsey
Without featuring a variant of James or a translation in another language, I wanted to find something uncommon that sounded similar. This one was very tough, especially since we also featured James' twin brother Jacob earlier. I settled on Ramsey. They have a similar sound  because of the "am" and "s" that should satisfy that quota, and they also have a potentially cool, bad boy vibe in common. Ramsey only had 93 births in 2014 for a ranking of #1649.  Other options: Hayes, Ellis, Hamish, Thiago

10. Daniel ---> Dashiell
These two names sound very similar to each other. Dashiell would work very well as an alternative choice for those who love Daniel but cannot use it. Daniel has always ranked well in the US but Dashiell has only been used in the US since 1979. It has never ranked in the Top 1000 and had only 123 births in 2014.  If you're looking for unusual, Dashiell is it! Other options: Adriel, Uriel, Dane, Niall

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What do you think of my choices? Would you choose different alternative names for any of these?

Top 10 Unisex Baby Names in 2014

Last month we discovered which names were most favored by America in 2014. As you know, Emma and Noah were ranked at #1.  Have you ever wondered which unisex names are the most popular?

The SSA doesn't make a separate list for unisex names. It's up to us to determine which names are used for both boys and girls.

If you saw my previous article regarding the boy-to-girl ratios of every unisex name within the Top 1000, you'll see that some names are used more often for one gender than the other, yet some names are very evenly used.

So how can we determine which unisex names are the most popular based on this information?

Since there are two genders, it's a bit complicated to determine the exact popularity, especially since I was taking into account the boy-to-girl ratios of the names, the number of births for each gender, and the rank assigned to the names by the Social Security Administration..

While determining which unisex names are the most popular across the genders, my dilemma was whether or not to include the barely-unisex names like Logan (94% male) or Harper (97% female). In the end, I did include those.

I ranked the Top 10 Unisex Names of 2014 based on the list of names and their data from my previous article. All data ultimately came straight from the SSA's list.

There was much debate and number crunching, but I chose to simplify things by averaging the sum of boy/girl ranks with the "most popular" names having the smallest numbers. Here's the top 10 that I came up with:

1. Avery
In every data crunching method that I toyed with, Avery was without a doubt the most-used unisex name by both genders. At #13 for girls and #186 for boys, Avery is definitely popular. It comes from a surname that may have been derived from either Alberich or Alfred, both names having a meaning related to elves. Because of that, Avery is generally said to mean "Elf Ruler".

2. Riley
Our second most popular unisex name is Riley which also comes from a surname. It actually has two origins. As an Irish surname, it's a variant of Reilly whose meaning is unknown; and as an English surname, it comes from a place name that refers to a "rye clearing". In 2014, Riley ranked at #47 for girls and #173 for boys.

3. Peyton
Between Peyton and Payton, this name is getting a lot of usage for girls. However, the boys still like it too. Peyton in particular is 71% girl but when you average both ranks, it becomes our #3 unisex name.  It came in at #56 for girls and #210 for boys which are respectable ranks! Peyton comes from an English surname which came from a place name meaning "Paega's town".

4. Jordan
Both Jordan and Jordyn have usage as unisex names within the Top 1000. While Jordyn is 91% girl, Jordan is 84% boy. Since we are only considering Jordan here as our #4 unisex name, it's interesting to note that it ranked at #55 for boys and #247 for girls. This name is generally based on the Jordan River near Israel.

5. Parker
This one surprised me a bit. It feels very masculine but it is being given to girls with increased frequency now. 20% of all Parkers born in 2014 were female, which is up from 17% in 2013. It ranked at #73 for boys and #235 for girls last year!  Parker is an English occupational surname that refers to a "keeper of the park".

6. Hayden
From an English surname, Hayden is derived from place names meaning "hay valley" or "hay hill". This name has a decent split of 63% boy and 37% girl. It ranks at #142 for boys and #199 for girls which makes them both reasonably popular. That's why this name is our #6 unisex name for 2014!

7. Angel
Following closely behind Hayden in terms of the rank averages, Angel is well used for both genders primarily in the Hispanic community.  It's more popular for a boy with 84% of all Angels being male. It ranks at #67 for boys and #275 for girls in 2014. The name is based on the heavenly creatures and means "messenger" in Greek.

8. Alexis
From a Greek name meaning "defender", Alexis is our 8th most popular unisex name in 2014. It ranks higher for girls at #64 but the boys hold their own at #302. The boys actually gained 2% from 2013 in the boy-to-girl ratio of usage.

9. Logan
This name is predominantly used by boys and ranked at #13 in 2014 with over 13 thousand births. However, it also ranked at #391 for girls which is actually quite high despite there being only 828 female births. Logan is unisex even though it has a 94/6 boy-to-girl ratio.  It is a surname meaning "little hollow" which relates to a place in Scotland.

10. Dylan
Similar to Logan, this name has a 93/7 boy-to-girl ratio. Dylan came in at #29 for boys in 2014 while it ranked #394 for girls. In the end, there were over 10 thousand male Dylans and just over 800 females.  This Welsh name meaning "great tide" ranks at #10 on this list!

What do you think of my top 10 list? Would you have crunched the numbers differently? If so, share your methods in the comments below! 

Your Ultimate Guide to Unisex Names: Boy-to-Girl Ratios in 2014

Welcome to our annual list of unisex names. This is where we analyze the gender ratios of each name. Some of these may not truly classify as a true "unisex name" because they will swing very heavily to one side or the other.

I chose to include some names like that because it is worth mentioning, especially if it ranked at 3% last year and now ranks at 5%. That means the name is beginning to gain more popularity for the minority gender.

Over time, it could continue to change and become more of a 20/80 thing and perhaps later a 40/60 thing. Wouldn't you like to be able to guess these things in advance if its a name you're pondering for a future child?

There have been many cases where a name was traditionally male and it was then slowly taken over by the girls. Some of those formerly male names are now considered completely female. Names evolve. If we can catch them in the act, well, I think it would be exciting.

I'm only mentioning all of this because last year I got comments regarding my monitoring of names like Ryan that were only given to 3% of girls. Yes, that does not mean that Ryan is a unisex name through and through. BUT it means that Ryan could potentially gain more usage for females over time and end up becoming a true unisex name.

Take a look at the current trend in Hollywood.  It seems like every other week we're hearing about a new celebrity baby girl being given a masculine name. While it may or may not catch on with mainstream parents right now, it could happen eventually. Things seem to be moving that way already and you never know what the future of naming might bring!

Here are some more examples of celebrity baby girls who were given traditionally masculine names:

Wyatt (Mila Kunis & Ashton Kutcher)
Lincoln (Kristin Bell & Dax Shepherd)
James (Blake Lively & Ryan Reynolds)
Ryan (Haylie Duff)
Maxwell (Jessica Simpson)
Hunter (Kevin Rahm)
Casper (Jason Lee)
Mason & Spencer (Kelsey Grammer)

There are likely many more examples of these. Now we are going to take a look at all of the potentially unisex names in the Top 1000.

Mostly Female Usage:

First, the following are the names that swing more toward the female side, meaning they have 60% or more usage for girls with 40% or less for boys.

Harper: 3% boy / 97% girl                   Boy: 327 births (#728) Girl: 9,564 births (#11) Avery: 19% boy / 81% girl Boy: 2,269 births (#186) Girl: 9,517 births (#13) Riley: 34% boy / 66% girl Boy: 2,429 births (#173) Girl: 4,761 births (#47) Skylar: 8% boy / 92% girl Boy: 409 births (#637) Girl: 4,732  births (#48) Peyton: 29% boy / 71% girl Boy: 1,828 births (#210) Girl: 4,426 births (#56) Alexis: 22% boy / 78% girl Boy: 1,172 births (#302) Girl: 4,188 births (#64) Taylor: 15% boy / 85% girl Boy: 691 births (#435) Girl: 3,782 births (#77) London: 12% boy / 88% girl Boy: 433 births (#611) Girl: 3,264 births (#93) Morgan: 12% boy / 88% girl Boy: 402 births (#650) Girl: 2,984 births (#101) Reagan: 7% boy / 93% girl Boy: 205 births (#999) Girl: 2,882 births (#106) Rylee: 8% boy / 92% girl Boy: 247 births (#877) Girl: 2,753 births (#113) Quinn: 25% boy / 75% girl Boy: 868 births (#363) Girl: 2,539 births (#126) Jordyn: 9% boy / 91% girl Boy: 239 births (#895) Girl: 2,533 births (#127) Kendall: 11% boy / 89% girl Boy: 310 births (#754) Girl: 2,432 births (#131) Ariel: 12% boy / 88% girl Boy: 319 births (#738) Girl: 2,419 births (#133) Payton: 14% boy / 86% girl Boy: 406 births (#644) Girl: 2,397 births (#134)

Eden: 17% boy / 83% girl Boy: 447 births (#601) Girl: 2,117 births (#151) Emery: 15% boy / 85% girl Boy: 361 births (#687) Girl: 2,026 births (#161) Reese: 17% boy / 83% girl Boy: 403 births (#648) Girl: 1,960 births (#165) Emerson: 39% boy / 61% girl Boy: 1,048 births (#324) Girl: 1,670 births (#196) Marley: 14% boy / 86% girl Boy: 273 births (#821) Girl: 1,643 births (#202) Finley: 36% boy / 64% girl Boy: 829 births (#374) Girl: 1,498 births (#223) Teagan: 14% boy / 86% girl Boy: 212 births (#979) Girl: 1,272 births (#253) Lyric: 17% boy / 83% girl Boy: 255 births (#860) Girl: 1,210 births (#271) Harley: 30% boy / 70% girl Boy: 407 births (#641) Girl: 940 births (#349) Kamryn: 20% boy / 80% girl Boy: 216 births (#967) Girl: 850 births (#380) Sage: 32% boy / 68% girl Boy: 399 births (#654) Girl: 834 births (#388) Tatum: 36% boy / 64% girl Boy: 462 births (#592) Girl: 828 births (#392) Jamie: 32% boy / 68% girl Boy: 292 births (#786) Girl: 633 births (#489) Leighton: 30% boy / 70% girl Boy: 240 births (#893) Girl: 568 births (#540) Jessie: 36% boy / 64% girl Boy: 280 births (#809) Girl: 504 births (#587) Emory: 40% boy / 60% girl Boy: 252 births (#868) Girl: 373 births (#743)

The most popular unisex name, meaning the name with the most usage across both genders, is Avery with over 9 thousand births for girls and 2 thousand for boys. This means they both rank well at #13 and #186 respectively.  Both Skylar and Skyler are gaining for the girls whereas Tatum, Finley, Alexis  Kendall, and Morgan have shifted toward the boys' side.

If you would like to make more comparisons from 2013 to 2014, take a look at our previous article featuring the Boy-to-Girl Ratios of Unisex Names in 2013.

Most Evenly Used for Both Genders:

Now let's look at the names that are very evenly matched for boys and girls. These names are the ones that come the closest to being truly gender neutral. The names on this list range from a 50/50 split to a 59/41 or 41/59 split.  In other words, these have the tightest ratios:

Charlie: 54% boy / 46% girl                Boy: 1,670 births (#225) Girl: 1,432 births (#229) Dakota: 43% boy / 57% girl Boy: 876 births (#360) Girl: 1,136 births (#285) Skyler: 46% boy / 54% girl Boy: 911 births (#352) Girl: 1,070 births (#302) Justice: 41% boy / 59% girl Boy: 518 births (#531) Girl: 756 births (#421) Phoenix: 59% boy / 41% girl Boy: 901 births (#355) Girl: 629 births (#494)

Armani: 57% boy / 43% girl Boy: 570 births (#489) Girl: 422 births (#671) Lennon: 47% boy / 53% girl Boy: 358 births (#691) Girl: 399 births (#699) Oakley: 52% boy / 48% girl Boy: 394 births (#657) Girl: 362 births (#768) Landry: 50% boy / 50% girl Boy: 270 births (#829) Girl: 269 births (#981) Azariah: 49% boy / 51% girl Boy: 264 births (#838) Girl: 278 births (#954)

The name that is officially most unisex for the year 2014 is Landry. There was only a difference of one birth between the genders which makes it a [rounded up] 50/50 split! It's the closest I've ever seen two names come to being equally used for both genders!  

The next closest name is Azariah with a 49/51 split which is very close!  Justice gained 4 percentage points for the girls over 2013.  One name was a big mover in particular this year: Skyler jumped 10 points in favor of the girls in 2014. 

Mostly Male Usage:

The following names lean more toward the male side but are still used for females too. These have a range of 60% or more for boys with 40% or less for girls. 

Logan: 94% boy / 6% girl                    Boy: 13,579 births (#13) Girl: 828 births (#391) Jayden: 96% boy / 4% girl Boy: 12,878 births (#15) Girl: 569 births (#539) Carter: 97% boy / 3% girl Boy: 10,599 births (#27) Girl: 355 births (#785) Dylan: 93% boy / 7% girl Boy: 10,350 births (#29) Girl: 822 births (#394) Ryan: 94% boy / 6% girl Boy: 9,026 births (#37) Girl: 603 births (#510) Hunter: 96% boy / 4% girl Boy: 8,759 births (#40) Girl: 362 births (#766) Cameron: 93% boy / 7% girl Boy: 7,013 births (#53) Girl: 524 births (#578) Jordan: 84% boy / 16% girl Boy: 6,810 births (#55) Girl: 1,300 births (#247) Angel: 84% boy / 16% girl Boy: 6,255 births (#67) Girl: 1,179 births (#275) Parker: 80% boy / 20% girl Boy: 5,677 births (#73) Girl: 1,386 births (#235) Blake: 89% boy / 11% girl Boy: 4,913 births (#84) Girl: 589 births (#499) Kayden: 92% boy / 8% girl Boy: 4,691 births (#90) Girl: 391 births (#712) Micah: 93% boy / 7% girl Boy: 3,612 births (#109) Girl: 264 births (#994) Sawyer: 79% boy / 21% girl Boy: 3,571 births (#110) Girl: 955 births (#344) Hayden: 63% boy / 37% girl Boy: 2,851 births (#142) Girl: 1,656 births (#199)

Kai: 90% boy / 10% girl Boy: 2,387 births (#177) Girl: 262 births (#1000) Karter: 89% boy / 11% girl Boy: 2,103 births (#194) Girl: 273 births (#968) Elliot: 83% boy / 17% girl Boy: 1,750 births (#217) Girl: 367 births (#756) Rylan: 84% boy / 16% girl Boy: 1,726 births (#219) Girl: 339 births (#812) Elliott: 83% boy / 17% girl Boy: 1,574 births (#233) Girl: 329 births (#833) Rowan: 67% boy / 33% girl Boy: 1,531 births (#239) Girl: 770 births (#412) Zion: 83% boy / 17% girl Boy: 1,471 births (#255) Girl: 295 births (#911) Dallas: 72% boy / 28% girl Boy: 1,359 births (#268) Girl: 522 births (#580) River: 64% boy / 36% girl Boy: 1,223 births (#287) Girl: 703 births (#453) Remington: 73% boy / 27% girl Boy: 1,101 births (#313) Girl: 410 births (#685) Amari: 62% boy / 38% girl Boy: 970 births (#340) Girl: 585 births (#524) Milan: 64% boy / 36% girl Boy: 748 births (#411) Girl: 424 births (#670) Rory: 69% boy / 31% girl Boy: 741 births (#416) Girl: 326 births (#840) Casey: 60% boy / 40% girl Boy: 519 births (#530) Girl: 352 births (#792) Remy: 60% boy / 40% girl Boy: 424 births (#621) Girl: 278 births (#956)

There are several names in the 90th percentile range that most people today would generally consider to just be boy names, but since they do get a handful of feminine usage, it's wise to keep an eye on the changes from year to year. 

For instance, a few of those names that ranked very-masculine (in the 90s) have had some changes from 2013 to 2014. Logan gained more female births and lost some male births. It was 95% boy in 2013 and is now 94%.  Ryan had more female births in 2014 which made the males lose 2%. Similarly, Hunter also had more female usage resulting in a lost of 1% for the boys.

Interestingly, spelling makes a difference. Out of all the Carters born in 2014, only 3% of them were female, however, 11% of all Karters were female.  Ryan is mostly masculine since only 6% of them were girls, but add the ever-popular letter L to the mix and suddenly 16% of all Rylans are female.

If you would like to make more comparisons from 2013 to 2014, take a look at our previous article featuring the Boy-to-Girl Ratios of Unisex Names in 2013.

What do you think of these stats? Can you point out anything interesting that I missed? What are your favorite unisex names?

Boy to Girl Ratios of Unisex Names in 2013

I went through the US Top 1000 baby names for 2013 and pulled out as many unisex names as I could. At least one name had to be in the Top 1000, but most of the names are on the list for both a boy and a girl. If you can think of any names that I missed --and I'm sure there are a few-- let me know so that I can include them.

Seeing information like this is helpful for those who are considering a unisex name but are unsure of how popular it really is for each gender. For example, Harper has really skyrocketed up the charts for girls lately. If you have always pictured it on a boy, it may be handy to know that only 4% of all Harpers are boys. Perhaps that matters to you, perhaps it doesn't. Either way, that kind of information can be found here.  You may even come across a name or two that you had no idea was somewhat unisex.

Alexis: 20% boy / 80% girl

Boy:  1,182 births (#294)

Girl: 4,741 births (#46)

Amari: 62% boy / 38% girl

Boy: 951 births (#337)

Girl: 576 births (#512)

Angel: 84% boy / 16% girl

Boy: 6,320 births (#67)

Girl: 1,204 births (#266)

Armani: 58% boy / 42% girl

Boy: 559 births (#486)

Girl: 409 births (#683)

Ashton: 93% boy / 7% girl
Boy: 2,597 births  (#152)
Girl: 188 births (#1252)

Avery: 18% boy / 82% girl

Boy: 2,036 births (#196)

Girl: 9,121 birth (#12)

Cameron: 93% boy / 7% girl

Boy: 6,809 births (#59)

Girl: 508 births (#566)

Carter: 97% boy / 3% girl

Boy: 9,512 births (#32)

Girl: 298 births (#859)

Casey: 60% boy / 40% girl

Boy: 553 births (#490)

Girl: 373 births (#726)

Charlie: 54% boy / 46% girl

Boy: 1,551 births (#233)

Girl: 1,315 births (#240)

Dakota: 45% boy / 55% girl

Boy: 890 births (#353)

Girl: 1,074 births (#293)

Dallas: 72% boy / 28% girl

Boy: 1,149 births (#302)

Girl: 454 births (#610)

Devon: 88% boy / 12% girl

Boy: 635 births (#446)

Girl: 83 births (#2226)

Drew: 84% boy / 16% girl

Boy: 1,170 births (#297)

Girl: 223 births (#1092)

Dylan: 94% boy / 6% girl

Boy: 10,058 births (#28)

Girl: 610 births (#489)

Eden: 16% boy / 84% girl

Boy: 377 births (#643)

Girl: 2,022 births (#158)

Elliot: 83% boy / 17% girl

Boy: 1,486 births (#241)

Girl: 308 births (#842)