Top 20 U.S. Baby Girl Names 2008

Emma, Isabella, Emily, Madison, and Ava Top the American Charts

May 10, 2009

Looking for a trendy name for a baby girl -- or hoping to avoid one? Here are the top 20 girl's names in the United States for 2008.

The Social Security Baby Name Index results are in for 2008, and this year Emma has taken Emily for the number one spot. This is the first year that Emily has fallen from the top spot since 1995, although the newly reigning Emma doesn't exactly mark a major change.

The names on the list have not changed much from the top 20 baby girl names of 2007. The only new name in the top 20 was Ella (up from #21 in 2007), and the only name to drop from the list was Grace (from #20 in 2007 to #21 in 2009).

Chloe Climbs the Charts

The biggest climber on the list was Chloe, which jumped from #16 to #10. Twenty years ago, Chloe was all the way down at #480, but has climbed steadily to join its place among other popular old fashioned girls' names like Olivia, Abigail, and Isabella.

Alternate spelling Khloe jumped onto the top 1000 list in 2006 and climbed to #196 in 2008, perhaps because of the popularity of media personality Khloe Kardashian. Chloe's rhyming buddies Zoe and Zoey, which also used to be uncommon, ranked in at #58 and #98.

Popular Baby Girl Names that Begin with E

One of the biggest name trends in recent years has been the popularity of old-fashioned baby girl names that begin with E, and this trend showed no sign of slowing up in 2008. Emma, Emily, Elizabeth, and Ella were all in the top 20, and Evelyn was not far behind at #54. At #167, Ellie hasn't gained as much notice, but is climbing as well. Other similar names that are slowly on the rise include Eva (#114), Elena (#211), and Eleanor (#256). On the other hand, Baby Boomer favorites Ellen and Elaine have fallen way out of favor.

Up and Coming Names

So which names are poised to overtake Emily and Emma? At #2 for the second year in a row, Isabella seems a likely choice. Other contenders from the top 10 that have become wildly popular in the past decade are Ava, Olivia, and Sophia.

So what names might make their way into the top 20 in the near future? The strongest contenders are Lily (#24) and Lillian (#29), which parents seem to have rediscovered all at once. Last year's hot mover Nevaeh (which is "heaven" spelled backwards) fell three points to #34, and perhaps will be replaced by quickly climbing Genesis (#95).

Another trend that seems to be moving up the chart is the old fashioned baby girl A name. Avery (#38), Aubrey (#42), Audrey (#44), and Amelia (#68) all moved up the chart in 2008, perhaps in part due to the trendiness of Ava.

Names Falling Out of Favor

Although names used to stay in favor for decades or even centuries at a time, modern name trends come and go much more quickly. Names that were very trendy in the 1970s and 1980s, such as Jennifer, Jessica, Heather, Megan, Kaitlyn, Amanda, Lisa, and Lindsay, are falling down the charts quickly.

One trend in particular that has clearly passed is the "Ashley" variety of names that dominated the 1980s. All the rage 20 years ago, Courtney, Whitney, and Brittany didn't even crack the top 250. Ashley, the name at the center of this trend, remains popular at #18, but has been falling steadily.

Baby Girl Names of the Future?

As can be seen by these recent shifts, naming trends for little girls have been changing rapidly since the Baby Boomer years. Twenty years from now, will elementary schools still be filled with Emmas, Madisons, and Abigails? Stay tuned.

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