Parents are Now Naming Their Babies After Places, and These are the Most Popular Ones

Coming up with baby names is hard. There are so many options, new or old, regal or homely, it takes some serious consideration to narrow it down to just one. Parents look to more than just their own family when they consider what names they want to give their children. A new trend that has taken over is naming kids after places! It is unique, quirky and a practice opted for by the very famous Kim Kardashian, whose third daughter is named Chicago West.

Popular Destination Names

From 2000-2020, Israel was the most common country name chosen by parents (with 36,273 babies in the U.S. receiving the name, irrespective of gender). The second-most famous was India (with 9,207 babies, all girls), followed by Kenya (with 9,127 babies, mainly girls). For city-inspired names, Preston took the top spot with 69,922 baby boys in the United States getting the name. Preston is the name of two towns in the US, one in Connecticut and one in Idaho. But, the original city Preston lies in Lancashire, England. For girls, Sydney is the most popular city-inspired name. During the 20-year study period, more than 105,000 babies were given the name after the Australian capital. While the results were slightly different in the UK, Chester was the most popular boys’ name, and Florence was the top girls’ name over the same period.

Reasons For Giving Destination Names To Children

According to luggage storage service Bounce, parents in the U.S. are naming their babies after important places. Bounce mentions that the trend may have started when parents began naming their children after favorite travel destinations, honeymoon spots, or even their birth cities. For many parents, the decision to name their child after a destination is actually inspired by wanting to instill a sense of wanderlust and adventure in their child from an early age.