The Baby Name Wizard allows you to see the popularity over time of various names. We tend to think that we like names because of something intrinsic about them, but actually it’s clear that fashion rules in names as in other areas of life. Would you still name your child after your great-grandmother if her name was Gertrude instead of Emma? Ruth was one of the most popular names early in the 20th century and almost no one (it’s probably due for a new run in about ten years).
In constrast, below is a popular name from the other end of the century. “Mason” shares the same vowel as many other names popular currently– Aaron, Aidan, Braden, Caleb, Jaden, Jacob, Nathan, etc. and for girls Ava, Ada, Bailey, Hailey, Kayleigh, Payton, etc. (If you think they’re not popular, ask a kindergarten mother.)
The popularity of Mason is so sudden that it will most likely fall off suddenly too, as those A names become a generation indicator like “Ruth” or “Debby” or “Jennifer” or “Madison.” Wonder what’s next?
