How to Choose the Perfect Baby Name

Your new baby has arrived and the first question everyone asks is "What's his name?" Woe to the poor parent who can't answer that question! The truth is that choosing the perfect baby name takes time and thought and sometimes even seeing the little one face to face before the right baby name appears.

One grandmother once told her pregnant daughter to go to the back door and shout the name she liked ten times as loud as she could. "If you still like it, then go ahead and use it, because you will be yelling that name for the next 18 years." She advised. Although you don't have to go that far, it's a god idea to keep usability in mind when choosing a baby name.

Top 100 Baby Names

If you decide to go with a more popular name, you might want to check out the top 100 baby names. This list includes boy and girl names and can be a great help to new parents or parents-to-be.

The top 100 baby names are listed in order of popularity and if you are looking online, you will probably even find the number of children given each name in the past year. A child who receives a name from the top100 list is bound to have others with the same name around him or her throughout life.

If you don't mind there being four Emily's or a half-dozen Joshua's in your child's school, then go ahead and take a good look at the top 100 baby names.

Unusual or Unique Baby Names

Some parents go the opposite way and specifically select a very different name or even make one up. Although a unique baby name can be fun at first, there are a few guidelines to remember in order to prevent a lifetime of misery.

- Avoid names that sound like another name, like Jenina, which sounds very similar to Angelina.

- Watch for names that might mean something in another language. Blanca is a pretty name and means "white" in Spanish, but some words aren't so innocent.
- Skip any name that sounds like a bad word; it will only lead to teasing.

Another way to go is to change the spelling of a regular name, although this can get confusing. An example of this would be Jane spelled Jayne.

Traditional Baby Names

For some families, choosing a traditional name is the only way to go. This might mean following a specific tradition such as giving every female child an E name with Caroline as a middle name or simply using a name of an ancestor or family member who has passed away.

While some names like Mary and John will be timeless, your great-great Aunt Edna's name might not seem so appropriate when it comes to a newborn. In this case, it is usually acceptable to use it as a second name or to combine two names for a more modern version.

Combining names also works if there is a disagreement over which family member to use. For example, if your mother's name is Thelma and your mother-in-law is Laura, you could combine the names to form a new one such as Lauma, Thaura, or Alma.