The Most Popular Names of 2012

What will Duchess Kate Middleton and Prince William name their royal baby?

With the news that the most popular royal couple in the world—Prince William and Duchess Catherine (Kate Middleton)—is expecting, we have to wonder: What will they name the baby? In 2012, the most popular names for girls here in the United States all ended in -a, according to parenting website BabyCenter.com.  The popular girls' names in 2012: Sophia, Emma, Olivia, Isabella and Ava. For boys: Aiden, Ethan, Liam, Mason and Jacob.  "Names from two generations back are meaningful and retro and have a cool factor," BabyCenter.com's Linda Murray told USA Today recently. BabyCenter.com released the list last week (and updates it frequently), just days before Prince William and his wife Kate Middleton announced they are expecting their first …

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Patch Pitch

Patch Game: Baby Names

Tell us the wackiest baby name you have ever heard.

Every December, BabyCenter compiles a listing of the most popular baby names for the year. The 2011 list was recently revealed:  Girls                       Boys These names are familiar and easy to pronounce, and we all probably know a handful of kids who answer to each of them. But the names I find most fascinating are the unusual and often contrived (or trying-too-hard) ones. Those that make you shudder a little upon hearing them. A couple which immediately come to mind:  singer Gwen Stefani’s son, Zuma or actress Gwyneth Paltrow’s daughter, Apple.  But those two celebrity baby names are downright pedestrian compared to some kids’ names at a South Carolina elementary school where my friend, Carol, works as a guidance counselor. She’s …

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Beth Jarvis

12:07 am on Thursday, December 15, 2011

Thanks Patch readers for playing last week's "Baby Names" Patch Game. With all of your phenomenal responses, it became too tough to choose the best entry. Therefore, each submission was put in a hat and we randomly picked our winner. (Drum roll please) Congratulations to Stephanie M. Daly, you're this week's Patch Game winner! Please email me your address so I can get your prize to you. (Note: …   more ›

Top Baby Names for Virginia in 2010

Social Security releases list

Wondering what to name your baby? Social Security compiles the top baby names from around the country each year. For 2010, the top baby names for Virginia were William and Olivia. (The top 100 are in a list below). Is your baby's name on the list? How did you decide what to name your baby? Tell us in the Comments box below this story! All data are from a 100 percent sample of Social Security records on Social Security card applications as of the end of February 2011. The following are the top 100 baby names for Virginia:    

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