In Italy today, the most common names given to newborns are Sofia for girls and Leonardo for boys. according to the most recent data from Istat, the Italian statistical institute. Right behind it is Aurora, and names that seemed like something your great-grandmother would give you, such as Emma, have made a strong comeback to the top of the lists.
This is no coincidence. There is a logic behind a name disappearing for decades and then resurfacing, and it repeats itself from generation to generation.
The cycle of a name
The onomast Enzo Caffarelli, Italian Rivista di OnomasticaHe describes the phenomenon as a curve. A name rises, reaches its peak, and then begins to fall. "Names often follow cyclical trends: they reach their peak and then recede when they become too common," he says.
When a name is everywhere, it loses its power to distinguish. Parents start to avoid it, and it falls out of favor. It becomes "old," then forgotten. And that's when the magic happens.
The Supreme Court reaffirmed: citizenship is born with the person.
- New legal front opened
- Processes can still be filed.
- Individual assessment before any decision.
When the old name starts to sound new again.
After many decades, a name associated with grandparents or great-grandparents may cease to sound simply old-fashioned and begin to be perceived as classic, rare, or original.
A father remembers his great-grandmother, finds the name beautiful and original again, and starts using it again. An artist adopts it as a stage name, a screenwriter gives it to the protagonist of a soap opera, and the curve starts rising again.
Emma is the perfect example. In the mid-20th century, very few girls were given that name in Italy. From 2005 onwards, that number increased to thousands per year. The same pattern, incidentally, was repeated in the United States, where Emma was among the top three most popular names.
What makes a name stick?
According to scholars, three forces drive these choices. Tradition, with the repetition of a grandfather's, uncle's, or godfather's name, still very much alive in the South. Religion, with the names of saints and Mary. And fashion, which gained importance in the last century, driven by cinema, soap operas, music, and celebrities.
A reminder for those seeking inspiration from Italian families: a very common name today may sound dated tomorrow, and a name that's "out of fashion" may be the next to come back. In the end, choosing a name is almost always a gamble on where it falls on the trend.
How a name becomes fashionable
Rises: becomes popular, often through film, soap opera or celebrity.
Saturates: becomes too commonplace and loses its ability to distinguish.
Some: it becomes "old" and is almost forgotten for decades.
Volta: nearly a century later, it sounds "old" and precious, and it resurfaces.
(Example: Emma, almost disappeared in the 20th century, is now back on top.)
Some old names that have regained popularity.
Women's
- Emma
- Giulia
- Matilde
- Beatrice
- Vittoria
- Geneva
- Bianca
- Alice
Men
- Leonardo
- Edoardo
- Thomas
- Lorenzo
- Pietro
- Giovanni
- Giorgio
- Giulio
