The top 10 baby names for boys in the US show some interesting shuffling of rankings for the 2010 stats from the Social Security Administration.
Jacob keeps his number one ranking for the twelfth year in a row!
Jayden stomps up another four places to rank at #4 - now that's some progress!
Joshua leaves the top ten, having ranked 6th last time. And Aiden replaces him, coming in at 9th spot.
The top three stay the same this year.
Want to pick a popular boy's name? With this group, you can be almost certain they aren't going to lose their popularity any time soon. Just take a look at how long some of these names have been in the top rankings!
Let's take a look at the stories behind the names, and see what's happening in the world of the most popular boys' names in the US:
Top 10 baby names for boys in the United States:
1. Jacob It's Jacob's twelfth year as the number one boy's baby name in the United States. And he's also in top spot yet again as a twin boy's name paired with Joshua.
Jacob's still looking pretty strong in that top spot, so it's hard to see him losing his crown next time round, unless Ethan - or even Jayden! - can manage to dethrone him.
2. Ethan Ethan's progress is slow but sure. After two years at number 3, he's now in his second year in second place. He ranked 25th in the year 2000 - so he has done extremely well so far. It's clear he's still hungry for that top rank. We wish him success!
3. Michael Michael has a proud pedigree - 38 years at number one, ten years at number two - and now two years in third place.
4. Jayden Jayden entered the top 1000 names in 1994. By 2003 he entered the top 100, and continuing his lightning streak was into the top 20 by 2007. Ranked 8 last time, he's moved up a whopping four places, which is pretty amazing for this group. I wasn't sure if Jayden would race up... or fall spectacularly. Looks like his star is rising - go Jayden!
5. William Amazingly enough, good old William ranked at number 2 non-stop between 1880 and 1920. He left the top 10 baby names lists in 1976, ranked 10 in 2006, spent two years at number 8 and is now in his second year in 5th position.
With the royal marriage of William and Kate, he might not want to just be "good"... he might want to be "the best!" Watch out for higher rankings next time?
6. Alexander Alexander was a new entry to the boys' top 10 baby names in 2008, ranking 6th. And for 2009, he jumped two places - but has gone down to 6th place again in 2010. I must admit, I thought Alexander would do better this year.
Alexander was already in the top 100 list as far back as 1880, when records began. He's popped in and out of that group over the following 100 years or so, and since 1977 has slowly been making his way up the charts.
7. Noah Noah's been pacing the halls of the top 1000 names since 1880, enjoying various levels of popularity. He broke into the top 100 names in 1995, got into the top ten baby names for boys last year, and has moved up two places this time.
8. Daniel Another incredibly popular name over time, Daniel has ranked in the top twenty since 1952. His current stretch in the top 10 began in 1999, and he's down a spot this year.
9. Aiden Thank goodness we have one new entry - and Aiden is the man! Into the top 1000 in 1995, he entered the top 100 in 2003 - so has made exellent progress! Question is - how will he do in 2011? Well... maybe that's up to you!!
10. Anthony Wow, here's another super trooper, with a presence in the top 100 since 1883. This is Anthony's eighth year in the top 10 baby names lists. I was a little worried Anthony might leave the rankings this time, but he's hung on proudly to his top ten ranking - bravo!
