When naming babies, some parents look to pop culture, others to the classics

LOWELL In 2004, Emmas, Madisons, Emilys and Kaitlyns dominated. Among boys, it was Jacob, Aidan, Ethan and Ryan.

But just a decade ago, it was Michael, Matthew, Christopher, Nicholas and John, Emily, Samantha, Jessica, Sarah, and yes, Ashley, which has fallen from its reign at No. 2 (between 1990 and 1995) to No. 8 in 2003, and finally out of the top 10 baby names for 2004. Sorry, Ashleys.

Closer to home, things sounded a wee bit different. Greater Lowell in 2004 had a dearth of Michaels, Aidans, Jaydens, Nathans, Ryans, and Alexanders. Among girls, there were a gaggle of Allisons, Emilys, Emmas, Kaylas, Victorias, Graces and Olivias. Ava, too, was a biggie, though Isabel, Joseph and Madison all had strong showings.

How times have changed.

A century back, John, William, James, George and Charles topped the boys’ list, while Mary, Helen, Margaret, Anna and Ruth were by far the most popular girls’ names across the nation. Fifty years ago, it was Michael, James, David, Robert and John. For girls, 1955 was a year of Marys, Deborahs, Debras, Lindas and Patricias.

Names with consistent lasting power are almost uniformly biblical in origin, particularly among boys, according to Social Security Administration lists. Matthew, Michael, Joshua and John have almost always had the votes, though for girls, Ruth (at 350th) and Rachael (324th) weren’t anywhere close to the top in 2003.

Rachel, however minus the second "a" jockeyed from ninth (1996) to 28th (2003), during the height of popularity of the TV sitcom Friends, starring character Rachel Green, played by Jennifer Aniston, of recent splitsville fame.

It’s a pendulum swing that those in the baby biz have seen quite a bit.

"I’ve seen people pulling names from popular TV shows," says Carrie Canup from Things Remembered at the Burlington Mall, who notes that a number of parents have dubbed their children "Willow," after Fox’s Buffy the Vampire Slayer and even mimicked Reese Witherspoon’s choice Ava for their own kids. "But I think a lot of the names, at least in this area, they’re going back to older names from Europe, even like in Ireland and Scotland, pulling those old classic names back."

But these days, parents’ and grandparents’ names, says Canup, are strictly a "middle name kind of thing."

"I haven’t gotten a whole lot of seconds, thirds or fourths," she says.

But over at Emerson Hospital in Concord, Loretta Weaver, who’s worked in the birth registry for 15 years, says she sees parents who dub babies after their kin.

"Occasionally (parents will) say, ’We’re giving our daughter my grandmother’s first name, or my mother’s first name,’ " Weaver says. "Occasionally you’ll get a name and (parents) they’ll say, ’This is where we honeymooned.’ "

Oddly enough, record-keeping rules don’t mandate naming immediately after a baby is born, though most are forwarded to the town clerk’s office where the hospital is located within 10 days of the birth. It’s something that Angela Gitschier, Lowell’s assistant city clerk, sees with some regularity. And that’s not a good thing.

"There are a lot (of babies) who don’t get named (right away)," she says, noting that she often uses baptismal certificates, school records, town census information or even medical files to prove people’s names. "The longer they wait, the longer you run into potential problems."

For parents who dawdle in the name game, www.babynames.com offers suggestions, based on a brief online survey, and will churn out six names for $24.95, and an even dozen for $34.95.

And the first baby to be born in Lowell in the wee hours of Jan. 1, 2005? Damien Christopher Tagorda, who arrived to parents Vanessa Tagorda, 18, and father, Todd Baxter, 22.

Won’t be too many others with his moniker on the playground, either. Damien, in 2003, ranked 198th in popularity.