ASSOCIATED PRESS
Emily again topped the list of most popular baby-girl names last year, registering as No. 1 for the 12th straight time. Jacob led among names for boys for the ninth year in a row.
New parents didn’t stray far from past habits in 2007 when naming their babies. Only one name — Elizabeth — is new to the top-10 list, returning after a two-year absence. Samantha, which previously ranked 10th, dropped to No. 12, according to the latest list released yesterday by the Social Security Administration.
Biblical names continued to dominate the boys’ list. Besides the Roman-derived Anthony at No. 7 and the German-origin William at No. 8, every other name in the top 10, including Jacob at No. 1 and Andrew at No. 10, can be found in the Old or New Testament.
By contrast, among the girls, only Abigail (No. 8), Hannah (No. 9) and Elizabeth (No. 10) are biblical names, though No. 6 Sophia, the Greek word for “wisdom,” is a biblical concept and sometimes personified, and No. 2 Isabella is a Romance-language form of “Elizabeth.”
Name specialists have said the staying power of the top names may have something to do with appealing to multiple ethnic or religious groups and having no widespread negative connotations. Emily also has literary associations, including Emily Dickinson, evoking images of a woman who is both beautiful and smart, professors say.
For male twins, parents were most likely to combine Jacob with Joshua, Matthew with Michael and Daniel with David. The most popular combination for female twins was Ella and Emma.
Besides Sophia, other popular 2007 girls names were based on spiritual and philosophical concepts. Rising to No. 31 was Nevaeh, or “heaven” spelled backwards; it previously ranked 43rd. Also represented in 2007 were Destiny (No. 41), Trinity (No. 72), Serenity (No. 126), Harmony (No. 315) and Miracle (No. 461). Cutting against the trend was Armani (No. 971).
Parents were less likely to name their sons based on spiritual concepts, although the 2007 list includes Sincere (No. 622) and Messiah (No. 723).
Social Security began compiling the name lists in 1997. The agency offers lists of baby names for each year since 1880 on the agency’s Web site at https://www.socialsecurity.gov.
THE NAME GAME
The following were the 10 most popular names for babies born in 2007:
BOYS
1) Jacob
2) Michael
3) Ethan
4) Joshua
5) Daniel
6) Christopher
7) Anthony
8) William
9) Matthew
10) Andrew
GIRLS
1) Emily
2) Isabella
3) Emma
4) Ava
5) Madison
6) Sophia
7) Olivia
8) Abigail
9) Hannah
10) Elizabeth
Source: Social Security Administration
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