Naming a human being is a huge responsibility, but that doesn't mean names can't be fun! I hope you enjoy nerding out with the data visualizations and analyses on this site as much as I enjoyed creating them.
My goal is to equip you with tools that provide fresh perspectives on the naming landscape in the USA.
Most pages have interactive tours launched by help buttons: please check them out!
Start typing a name below to explore US historical name popularity data. Names are grouped by pronunciation and popularity data covers all spelling variations.
Sophia, Sofia or Sofiyah? They're all the same here, in the internet's first attempt to create pronunciation-grouped ranking lists for every year from 1880 to 2023 for all 100k+ names in the Social Security Administration's baby name database.
Explore the popularity of baby names from 1880 to 2023 with the first interactive chart to show how names trend by pronunciation, not just spelling. See all the "Caitlin"s and "Kaitlyn"s together for the first time!
Area charts show the big picture:
Line charts are great for comparing trends:
My goal is to magnify human expertise with the latest in data science, artificial intelligence, and data visualization to bring you a unique way to explore names.
Name nerds: I need your help! If you see names that don't belong together, please downvote innaccurate pronunciations on the "Pronuncations" tab for that name group (example). Upvoting accurate pronunciations also helps. The algorithm I created to group name spellings by pronunciation is imperfect, and your feedback is essential to improve it.
This site is under construction. Check back soon for more features!
Site last updated: March 31, 2025 at 7:11 PM UTC
© 2025 NamePlay.org
Made with ❤️ by Aaron J Becker