Are you able to handle this baby name trend?
An expert baby namer says parents are actually choosing monikers that sound “cool” as a TikTok or Instagram handle.
“Communication and technology are so huge at once and it helps individualize the kid and offers them their very own unique identity,” Steph Coffield, 40, explained to SWNS.
“People want their kids to have that unique identity — they need their kids to have a cool name handle for Instagram or TikTok in the long run,” added Coffield, who charges as much as $500 to assist expecting parents select the proper name for his or her child.
The Minneapolis stay-at-home mom of three says unusual baby names are growing more popular — which is great because she’s “so over” John and Mary.
Examples of unique names that also double as interesting social media handles include Ferris, Keaton, and Townsend for boys, Coffield said.
For women, Coffield suggests Birdena, Doretta, and Velma.
One other trend for 2024 is names with an “ie” ending.
“I feel we’re going to see lots more Sonnys and lots more Lennies — Lennie and Lenny — because persons are loving that ‘ie’ ending for each girls and boys,” Coffield reasoned.
Also popular is using surnames as first names and giving girls masculine names.
“Individuals are going with Barrett for boys,” Coffield explained. “For women, I’m seeing lots more masculine names, not only Logan and James anymore, but Denver and Murphy.”
Coffield says she hasn’t seen as many feminine names on boys.
“Often you need to name your boy after something traditional — possibly it’s a family name or he’s the third of a generation,” Coffield said. “For women, now we have traditionally placed less deal with them in society and so that they find yourself getting all the chances — so for ladies, you’ll be able to pick anything.”
Coffield is an advocate for gender-neutral names and even published a book in 2022 titled “Names Don’t Have a Gender.”
Her services range from $25 for five name suggestions to $500 for an “interactive experience,” which incorporates unlimited name suggestions, three video calls, and a customized certificate.
She gained recognition by talking about birth empowerment on TikTok — her Names With Steph page now boasts over 267,700 followers.
“I used to be getting so many requests I had to start out charging for it,” she recalled.
But her love for unusual names similar to Rogue, Rebel, and Story has been met with resistance, as social media users wonder how these unique monikers will age.
“People say, ‘Well, what about after they grow up?’ and to that time — take a look at Dolly Parton. Her name is Dolly, and he or she is an icon. She owned that name,” Coffield declared.
“I don’t care in the event you are 4 or 95,” she continued. “I feel that name works. Similar to names don’t have a gender, names don’t have an age.”