Some baby names feel like they’ll last forever, but new data suggests a number of once-popular choices are “at risk of going extinct in 2026.”
Baby names act like cultural time stamps, revealing what captures the attention of parents – and what they’re starting to leave behind.
While some names that once surged in popularity felt everywhere for a moment, they are now dropping so quickly that experts say they may be “at risk of going extinct in 2026.”
The trend isn’t surprising to baby-naming experts, who say rapid rises in popularity are often a warning sign.
Avoid pop culture trends
According to Colleen Slagen, sharp spikes are often followed by steep declines, particularly for names linked to pop culture, like Chandler (Friends), Watson (Sherlock), Meadow (The Sopranos) or Cersei Lannister, the ruthless queen in Game of Thrones.
“‘Cersei.’ I gave my honest advice, and said don’t do it,” Slagen, a baby naming consultant, told Nexstar of advising a client against using a name inspired by the cunning queen. “They thought it was pretty, but everyone already has an association.”
“I steer people away from trendy,” said Slagen who helps parents find perfect baby names through her company, NamingBebe.com. “Any name that jumps over 100 spots a year in popularity…in my mind, that’s the sign of a name that’s going to go out of fashion.”
Naming trends
To better understand those shifts, BabyCenter, a digital parenting resource, examined naming trends within its top 1,000 baby names, focusing on those experiencing the steepest declines – and identifying which names could be on the verge of going “extinct.”
One trend clearly losing momentum is the use of common names with unconventional spellings. Variations like Charleigh, Alivia, Maddison, Emmitt, and Mohamad, once popular for their uniqueness, are now falling out of favor as parents return to more traditional forms.
“Spelling it differently, it doesn’t necessarily make it unique. Just more confusing,” Slagen said.
That shift toward simplicity is showing up in other areas as well. Place-inspired names are also cooling off, with Malaysia, Dallas, and London declining for girls, while Boston is dropping in popularity for boys.
Sound patterns are changing too. Boy names ending in “-y” are slipping down the charts, including Huxley, Grady, Rey, Corey, and Harry – all of which are now close to falling out of the top 1,000 entirely.
Letters matter as well. Names beginning with D and K are being used less frequently across the board. For girls, Danielle, Dylan, Kenna, and Kinley are declining, while Dominic, Dev, Kylian, and Karim are falling for boys.
Names ‘at risk of going extinct in 2026’
Here are the names of girls and boys with the “steepest decline” from 2024 to 2025, as reported by BabyCenter:
Girls
- Charleigh
- Mckinley
- Prisha
- Ezra
- Sasha
- Mía
- Kenna
- Kori
- Dior
- Shaikha
- Gabrielle
- Zaylee
- Ocean
- Allie
- Giana
- Skyler
- Kinley
- Aarya
- Kylee
- Renata
- Rayne
- Malaysia
- Goldie
- Halle
- Amayah
- Kenzie
- Avianna
- Alivia
- Danielle
- Everlee
- Kiana
- Maddison
- Vada
- Indie
- Regina
- Averie
- Elsa
- Kaeli
- Lilian
- Siena
- Dylan
- Dallas
- Amal
- Nicole
- Oaklyn
- Brinley
- Daleyza
- Payton
- London
- Abby
Boys
- Kylian
- Atharv
- Enoch
- Crue
- Huxley
- Salman
- Camilo
- Advik
- Emmitt
- Garrett
- Jaxton
- Avyaan
- Karim
- Ishaan
- Dax
- Mohamad
- Case
- Ryland
- Franco
- Boston
- Santana
- Reign
- Rudra
- Ridge
- Grady
- Dominick
- Mikael
- Aryan
- Rey
- Adan
- Jase
- Avi
- Quinn
- Gage
- Hamad
- Anderson
- Corey
- Gunner
- Bryce
- Brixton
- Chandler
- Harry
- Alonso
- Frank
- Trace
- Bruce
- Jedidiah
- Langston
- Ignacio
- Dev
Of course, choosing a baby name remains deeply personal, and trends don’t dictate what parents should choose. Still, experts say these patterns offer a fascinating glimpse into how tastes evolve – and which names may soon become rare reminders of a specific moment in time.
If you were naming a baby, would you name him/her something that catches your personal interests? Or would you use a name that’s more likely to not lose its appeal over time? Please let us know what you think and then share this story so we can hear from others!
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