Usual Nickname, Unexpected Name--Nikki

How on earth did I do a Nicky-names post for boys, and not include some for girls? Shame, shame.
Nicole, of course, was a staple of 80s naming, and surprisingly, isn't too far out of the Top 100 today. Nicolette & Nicola are pretty recognizable variants, but what else can lead to Nicki?

(I also have to say, how amazed I am--whenever I do one of these posts, I discover some great names that really could work for previous UNUNs!)

• Adonika (ah-DOH-nee-kah, Swedish)--feminine of Adonis
• Ainikki (EYE-neek-kee, Finnish)
• Andronika (ahn-DRON-ee-kah, Greek)
• Annika (AHN-nee-kah, Scandinavian)--form of Anna/Hannah. Other forms include Anniken (AHN-nee-ken, Norwegian), and Annikki (AHN-neek-kee, Finnish).
• Arnika (AHR-nee-kah, Scandinavian--from Germanic, "eagle" [coincides with German & Polish arnika, cognate of the plant arnica]
• Aunikki (OW-neek-kee, Finnish)--form of Agnes
• Dominika (doh-MEE-nee-kah, Czech, Russian, Slovak; doh-mee-NEE-kah, Polish)--feminine of Dominic. Another form is Domnika (DOM-nee-kah, Macedonian).
• Enikő (EN-ee-koo, Hungarian)
• Hennika (HEN-nee-kah, Scandinavian)--feminine of Henry
• Jannike (YAH-nee-kah, Scandinavian)--form of Jane. Other forms include Janneke (Dutch) and Jannicke (Norwegian).
• Mainikki (MYE-neek-kee, Finnish)--"wonderful"
• Nicaia (NEE-kah-yah, [Ancient] Greek)
• Nicolaia (NEE-koh-lah-yah, Danish)--Another form of Nicole. Also spelled Nikolaia.
• Nicolina (nee-koh-LEE-nah, Italian)--And another form of Nicole. Also spelled Nikolina.
• Nikhila (NIK-hil-ah, Hindi)
• Nikita (nee-KEE-tah, English, Scandinavian)--from Greek via Russian, "unconquerable"
• Veronika (veh-RON-ih-kah, veh-roh-NEE-kah, vehr-OH-nee-kah)--also spelled Veronica.

American v. British, Part 2

Last time, I took a look at the differences between the British & American popularity lists, focusing on names that are much more common in the UK than the US. Well, this time--it's personal! Time to see what names are much more common here than across the pond.

And here's the first set--names so American they're not used in the UK at all!

Boys:

1. Brantley
2. Bennett
3. Garrett
4. Braylon
5. Lane
6. Gunner
7. Waylon
8. Brycen
9. Brooks
10. Landyn
11. Gerardo
12. Barrett
13. Colten
14. Remington
15. Porter
16. Kamden
17. Gunnar
18. Alijah
19. Mauricio
20. Major

Girls:

1. Jordyn
2. Kylee
3. Kinsley
4. Brynn
5. Londyn
6. Emery
7. Ximena
8. Makenna
9. Adelyn
10. Adalynn
11. Emerson
12. Allyson
13. Leslie
14. Alondra
15. Madilyn
16. Kyleigh
17. Lyric
18. Yaretzi
19. Brynlee
20. Aubrie

A bit too....modern...perhaps? Here are the top 20 'American' names that appear on both (full) popularity charts:

Boys:

1. Jesus
2. Easton
3. Bryson
4. Paxton
5. Angel
6. Avery
7. Gael
8. Iker
9. Erick
10. Josue
11. Emiliano
12. Tanner
13. Cesar
14. Derrick
15. Beckett
16. Weston
17. Trenton
18. Collin
19. Landon
20. Gavin

Girls:

1. Allison
2. Adalyn
3. Makenzie
4. Genesis
5. Avery
6. Kinley
7. Camila
8. Delaney
9. Jillian
10. Jordan
11. Haylee
12. Aubrey
13. Reagan
14. Presley
15. Valeria
16. Kaydence
17. Nayeli
18. Briella
19. Fernanda
20. Alejandra

Wow, the Spanish influence really is apparent, isn't it? As is our love of surnames.
Being American, I have no idea how crazy these names might appear to our overseas friends, but if it's anything like some of the 'most British' names do here, I should probably pare down the 'most American' names to the British Top 1000. ;)

Boys:

1. Landon
2. Gavin
3. Colton
4. Wyatt
5. Brady
6. Silas
7. Ian
8. Brayden
9. Ryder
10. Colin
11. Jace
12. Parker
13. Julian
14. Isaiah
15. Jeremiah
16. Ayden
17. Braxton
18. Axel
19. Tyson
20. Justin

Girls:

1. Kaylee
2. Addison
3. Claire
4. Brooklyn
5. Serenity
6. Paisley
7. Kimberly
8. Mariah
9. Makayla
10. Ashley
11. Audrey
12. Melanie
13. Brianna
14. Lillian
15. Andrea
16. Trinity
17. Arianna
18. Samantha
19. Harper
20. Alaina

Wait, does Ashley appear on the 'most American' girls' list, but the 'most British' boys' list? Interesting. There are a few other very 'British' boys' names that I see much more often on girls here--Finley & Mckenzie off the top of my head. 

As well as surnames, we Americans seem to have embraced noun-names much more enthusiastically. 

It'll be interesting to see if we start swapping trends, or at least a few trendy names, in the next decade or two. 

American v. British: Part 1

The British ONS released their name data a few months back (woo-hoo! more numbers!). Top 100 is here, and you can download their full lists here (don't worry, nowhere near as long as the US lists!).
Despite the fact that Americans have a much larger "naming pool", there are many names that appear on the British list that don't on the American.
Part of that can be explained by the fact that the British list allows hyphenated names--"Lily-Grace" appears just like that, where on the American list it'd be either "Lilygrace" or "Lily" with "Grace" as a middle.
Surprisingly, Brits also have a much smaller babies/name ratio--with 60 babies/name for boys ('names' separated by spelling, so "Aidan" & "Aiden" are considered different names), and 46 babies/name for girls. Americans average 142 babies/name for boys, and 99 babies/name for girls. Again, this can partially be explained by the hyphenated names, and partially by the fact that the US just has a much, much larger population--about 730,000 babies were born last year in the UK, and 3,900,000 in the US.

I first set out to find the "most British" & "most American" names--that is, names that are infinitely more common in Britain than the US and vice-versa. And so here, are the top 20 names that appear on the British popularity lists, but not the American:

Boys:

1. Olly
2. Albie
3. Fraser
4. Osian
5. Harri
6. Gethin
7. Tomos
8. Barney
9. Tyler-James
10. Bertie
11. Dougie
12. Oliwier
13. Frazer
14. Georgie
15. Tommy-Lee
16. Iestyn
17. Herbie
18. Ieuan
19. Teddie
20. Rudi

Girls:

1. Lily-Rose
2. Amelia-Rose
3. Lily-Mae
4. Ffion
5. Ellie-May
6. Lily-May
7. Ellie-Mae
8. Lilly-May
9. Bethan
10. Jorgie
11. Lilly-Mae
12. Lilly-Rose
13. Ella-Rose
14. Tulisa
15. Ellie-Mai
16. Gracie-Mae
17. Ava-Rose
18. Evie-Mae
19. Lillie-Mae
20. Lacey-Mae

Good grief. Those hyphens really confuse things. Removing those....

Boys:

1. Olly
2. Albie
3. Fraser
4. Osian
5. Harri
6. Gethin
7. Tomos
8. Barney
9. Bertie
10. Dougie
11. Oliwier
12. Frazer
13. Georgie
14. Iestyn
15. Herbie
16. Ieuan
17. Teddie
18. Rudi
19. Iwan
20. Elis

Girls:

1. Ffion
2. Bethan
3. Jeorgie
4. Tulisa
5. Poppie
6. Fearne
7. Lowri
8. Xanthe
9. Orlaith
10. Dulcie
11. Dolcie
12. Kornelia
13. Tamzin
14. Eleri
15. Cadi
16. Hettie
17. Ottilie
18. Neive
19. Catrin
20. Romilly

I'm guessing that in the US, most of these won't ring 'British' so much as "rare", or to the non-nerdy, "weird". So, how about the most 'British' names that appear on both (full) popularity lists?

Boys:

1. Alfie
2. Barnaby
3. Archie
4. Harry
5. Finlay
6. Rafferty
7. Vinnie
8. Kenzie
9. Freddie
10. Mikolaj
11. Jac
12. Ashley
13. Wiktor
14. Ollie
15. Matas
16. Mckenzie
17. Rupert
18. Franciszek
19. Owain
20. Jenson

Girls:

1. Darcey
2. Isobelle
3. Cerys
4. Darcie
5. Poppy
6. Orla
7. Florence
8. Niamh
9. Freya
10. Kitty
11. Oliwia
12. Imogen
13. Sian
14. Zuzanna
15. Nikola
16. Maisie
17. Seren
18. Aqsa
19. Wiktoria
20. Georgie

I have to admit, I really like most of these names!
Apparently the influence of Eastern Europe is much stronger in the UK than the US! Not too surprising, though, given its closer proximity. I imagine we'll see something similar with the US & Spanish names next time... 

Still too outlandish? Well, here are the most 'British' names from the American Top 1000: 

Boys:

1. Harry
2. Theo
3. Harvey
4. Reuben
5. Callum
6. Finley
7. Lewis
8. Frankie
9. Jamie
10. Harley
11. Toby
12. Charlie
13. Bobby
14. Tommy
15. Sonny
16. Stanley
17. George
18. Ronnie
19. Alfred
20. Ben

Girls:

1. Evie
2. Millie
3. Esme
4. Matilda
5. Holly
6. Isla
7. Amelie
8. Martha
9. Lacey
10. Tia
11. Jessica
12. Phoebe
13. Zara
14. Lara
15. Libby
16. Mollie
17. Lola
18. Alisha
19. Beatrice
20. Daisy

Even though I knew going in that the big British trends right now are double-names and diminutives--for both genders--I'm still surprised at many of these names! For the most part, not what the typical American thinks of when we hear "British".

The most 'American' names coming next time. Cheers!