Are Masculine Middle Names for Baby Girls the Hot New Trend in Illinois?

Many Illinois parents are thinking outside the box when it comes to choosing a middle name for their daughters, and it looks like this trend might stick around for a while.

Choosing a Name for Your Baby

Choosing a name for your baby is one TOUGH decision, or at least it was for me and my husband.

Did we want a traditional name?

Did we want a unique name?

Did we want a name with strong family significance?

Could we actually see ourselves calling our baby the name we choose?

A million questions ran through our heads, but we ended up choosing Ella and Harper for our daughters' first names with middle names that honored both of our maternal grandmothers.

Are Masculine Middle Names for Girls the New Hot 'Thing'?

In the last week, 3 different couples that I know have welcomed baby girls, and each of these precious girls have masculine middle names; "Ryan", "James", and "Raine".

Now, if it sounds like I am disagreeing with the name choices these parents made for their baby girls, that is 100 percent NOT TRUE. Honestly, I am LOVING this trend and dying to know what and who inspired the names!

Is this an old baby name trend that I was oblivious to 9 and almost 7 years ago when I had my baby girls, or is this something brand new?

Popular Baby Name Trends

Choosing baby names off our family trees is nothing new, and in some families using the maternal grandmother's maiden surname as a middle name is customary too, but what about middle names like James or Ryan for baby girls? Could this be a new twist on a long-established tradition? Maybe.

According to a TODAY article from 2022, masculine middle names for baby girls are becoming more popular because it's "a way to honor a male relative or hero in your daughter’s name without 'feminizing' it."

Another article I found from ABC Everyday says;

The trend of giving masculine names to girls comes at a time of changing gender roles, a renewed push for equality and new discussions about gender fluidity.

Girls with a gender-neutral name or masculine name may even have increased opportunities in traditionally male-dominated roles.

Pretty fascinating, don't you think?