I really, really like the books by the authors of Beyond Jennifer and Jason. They track name trends across the country (different trends in different places) and in other English-speaking countries. They tell you which names are on their way in; which are on their way out; which are so hot that your child will be one of several in every classroom they're ever in (So Far In They're Out). And So Far Out They're In. They note name cycles back over 100 years, which is really fascinating, and which types of names are on the upswing.

Here is a link to their naming website: 

You'll want to get the most current copy of their book, which has now been completely revamped and is due out in June. Then, if they still have this chapter, you'll want to look at Fitting In/Standing Out. I named all my kids from this particular list, and *in their peer groups* I get complements all the time. For example, my almost-10-year-old daughter bears a name that is a variation on a very popular name. It's similar enough in sound to be familiar, but at the time has a very cool twist. And it's an actual traditional name. Same for my younger daughter's name. Almost every time we meet someone new, the parent says "What lovely, unusual names!"

The thing is, we now hear my 10-year-old's name given to many new babies. But we've only met one other child her age with that name. Which is what you want: a name that's on its way up but hasn't hit it yet. Early carriers of that kind of name are automatically a little more cool.

They will also tell you how to pick sibling names. For example, if you have one son named, oh, Rocco and a daughter named Isabella, then you wouldn't want to name anyone Blake--is Blake a boy or a girl? You can tell what Rocco and Isabella are, but not Blake. Or if you name a girl something extremely feminine like Emmeline (a good sub for Emma, from the fitting in/standing out thing) or Angelica, you wouldn't want to name her little sister Madge or Edna. Before even meeting them, people would have one of them pegged as a good blind date and the other pegged as a good babysitter.

Their book has gone through many revisions, with smaller books released in between. It went from being Beyond Jennifer and Jason, to Beyond Jennifer and Jason, Madison & Montana, to a complete renaming: Beyond Ava and Aidan. Their newest book before that was Brilliant Baby Names: What's Hot and What's Not from 2007; and a revision of another smaller book, Cool Baby Names, revised 2008.
Source(s):
http://www.amazon.com/Beyond-Ava-Aiden-Enlightened-Naming/dp/0312539150/ref...


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