Most twin parents want names that will sound good together. Whether you choose names to honor family members, because they rhyme, or because they don’t — choosing names for twins can be tricky. If you’re like me, you probably checked out (or are in the process of checking out) all sorts of resources before deciding on names for your twins. To make is easy for you, we’ve compiled our own list of techniques: How to choose your twin baby names, gives you all the inside scoop for selecting twin baby names.
Plus, every year, the US Social Security Administration publishes lists of popular names, and fortunately for us, they also publish a list of most popular twins names. The formatting is not fancy, but hey — I’m a working girl and it’s the quick and dirty version. So, without further ado, here is their list of most popular twin names for 2010.
Girl Twins Names
1 Ella, Emma
2 Olivia, Sophia
3 Gabriella, Isabella
4 Faith, Hope
5 Ava, Emma
6 Isabella, Sophia
7 Madison, Morgan
8 Ava, Ella
9 Ava, Olivia
10 Mackenzie, Madison
11 Abigail, Isabella
12 Abigail, Emma
13 Hailey, Hannah
14 Makayla, Makenzie
15 Addison, Avery
16 Elizabeth, Emily
17 Ava, Mia
18 Heaven, Nevaeh
19 Abigail, Emily
20 Emma, Olivia
21 London, Paris
22 Chloe, Claire
23 Mia, Mya
24 Anna, Emma
25 Arianna, Brianna
26 Isabella, Olivia
27 Abigail, Lillian
28 Addison, Ava
29 Emma, Isabella
30 Samantha, Sophia
31 Ella, Olivia
32 Emma, Hannah
33 Emma, Mia
34 Faith, Grace
35 Madison, Makenzie
36 Madison, Olivia
37 Abigail, Olivia
38 Anabella, Isabella
39 Chloe, Zoe
40 Elizabeth, Isabella
41 Elizabeth, Victoria
42 Jada, Jade
43 Julia, Sophia
44 Kayla, Kylie
45 Madison, Megan
46 Mia, Sophia
47 Natalie, Olivia
48 Paige, Payton
49 Serenity, Trinity
50 Valentina, Valeria
Girl/Boy Twins Names
1 Madison, Mason
2 Emma, Ethan
3 Taylor, Tyler
4 Madison, Michael
5 Jayda, Jayden
6 Madison, Matthew
7 Samuel, Sophia
8 Addison, Aiden
9 Olivia, Owen
10 Zachary, Zoe
11 Addison, Jackson
12 Aiden, Ava
13 Emily, Ethan
14 Emma, Ryan
15 Isaac, Isabella
16 Natalie, Nathan
17 Abigail, Benjamin
18 Andrew, Emma
19 Isabella, Isaiah
20 Jada, Jaden
21 Brian, Brianna
22 Emma, Jack
23 Aiden, Emma
24 Eli, Ella
25 Jacob, Olivia
26 Lily, Logan
27 Michael, Michelle
28 Naomi, Noah
29 Abigail, Alexander
30 Abigail, Andrew
31 Brandon, Brianna
32 Chloe, Christian
33 Elizabeth, William
34 Emily, Matthew
35 Emma, Jacob
36 Emma, William
37 Jacob, Sarah
38 Lilly, Logan
39 Nicholas, Sophia
40 Noah, Sophia
41 Oliver, Olivia
42 Sophia, William
43 Abigail, Jacob
44 Addison, Austin
45 Alexander, Sophia
46 Ella, Jackson
47 Emma, Evan
48 Emma, James
49 Jayla, Jaylen
50 Zachary, Zoey
Boy Twins Names
1 Jacob, Joshua
2 Ethan, Evan
3 Jayden, Jordan
4 Daniel, David
5 Matthew, Michael
6 Landon, Logan
7 Elijah, Isaiah
8 Jacob, Joseph
9 Jayden, Jaylen
10 Isaac, Isaiah
11 Caleb, Joshua
12 Andrew, Matthew
13 James, John
14 Alexander, Nicholas
15 Jeremiah, Josiah
16 Joseph, Joshua
17 Nathan, Nicholas
18 Jonathan, Joshua
19 Logan, Lucas
20 Ethan, Nathan
21 Aiden, Ethan
22 Jeremiah, Joshua
23 Alexander, Andrew
24 Alexander, Benjamin
25 Logan, Luke
26 Jacob, Lucas
27 Jonathan, Joseph
28 Nathan, Noah
29 Andrew, Anthony
30 Brandon, Bryan
31 Daniel, Michael
32 Daniel, Samuel
33 Isaiah, Jeremiah
34 Jaden, Jordan
35 Jayden, Kayden
36 John, Joseph
37 Matthew, Ryan
38 Aiden, Austin
39 Benjamin, Samuel
40 Christopher, Nicholas
41 Taylor, Tyler
42 Benjamin, William
43 Hayden, Hunter
44 Santiago, Sebastian
45 Alexander, Anthony
46 Alexander, William
47 Brandon, Brian
48 Carter, Cooper
49 Evan, Owen
50 Evan, Ryan
One fun aspect of parenting twins is choosing twin baby names. Some parents agonize over the decision — while some have no trouble at all. There are several philosophies to choosing twin baby names (or, as we we like to call them “twinfants” names). But, you need not worry, no matter your philosophy, you’ll eventually settle on something that will be perfect for your little sweethearts.
How to Choose Baby Names for Twins
Family Names. Some parents of multiples will use the opportunity to honor those special to the family (family members, ancestors, friends). This is a great chance to do that as there are multiple children, and thus multiple names – so that you do not have to choose which family member to honor first. - Same Initials. Another option is to name the babies so that all the names in the twins, triplets, or higher order multiples ”set” begin with the same letter. Some examples: Aiden & Addison, Brandon & Bryon, and Jacob & Joshua. Thinking ahead, one pitfall to naming a set of multiples with the same initials is for labeling possessions such as clothing, sippy cups, etc. If they all have the same initials — you’ll have to do a bit more writing. But, this is a minor inconvenience and may not deter you if you like the idea or the sound of the names together.
- Birth Order. Typically hospitals will assign a letter to your babies as they are born (A, B, C, etc.). Multiples parents have been known to stick with the letter assigned to each. Examples: A-Abigail, B-Brenden, C-Caleb, etc.
- Sound Alike or Rhyming. Many sets of twins are named based on similar sounding names. Some popular examples: Jayden & Jordan, Ethan & Evan, and Taylor & Tyler, or rhyming names Zoe & Chloe. Parents need to be aware, though, of a danger with rhyming names. Outside of the immediate family, it can already be difficult to distinguish between identical twins. Having rhyming names can add to the difficulty and be frustrating to teachers and other significant players in your twins lives.
- Meaningful Names. Twins are often named to reflect family values or are symbolic in some way to the family. Examples: Faith & Hope, Jacob & Joseph, Austin & Denver. Or, maybe you’ll want to choose names that have a similar or complimentary meaning in another ancient language. Examples: Duke & Dean (which both mean “leader” in French).
- Complimentary or Harmonious. Sometimes we just like the way the names sound together. It is appealing the way the twins’ names roll off your tongue. For instance: Madison & Morgan, Olivia & Sophia, Ava & Emma.
- Same Complexity. Twin names often sound better together when they have the same number of syllables. For example, Jessica & Samantha, and Tom & Jo.
- Stand Alone. Probably the easiest method of all is to simply choose names that you like, and don’t worry about how they sound together. Some would even argue that this is the “best” way to do it because it promotes individuality.
Many resources can help with choosing names for your twins. Tons of books of baby names have been written over the years, and many baby related website have lists and pages of baby names. One such resource that I think is especially helpful is the Social Security Administration’s list of Popular Baby Names and Popular Names of Twins. These lists are updated annually, showing the most popular names for the prior year.
Try on names for a while. Write them out. Then, ask friends and family what they think. But, if you’re like me, maybe you want to keep the names a secret among your friends and family. If so, another great option is to ask for advice from online twins communities and/or twins support groups. Many great communities exist and typically, your friends and family are not members.
Finally, it is important to keep in mind that no matter what names you choose for your twins, triplets, or higher order multiples, there will always be those that think you should have chosen something else. Most people will be supportive, but there will be those that will be insistent in presenting their “perfect” names for your little ones. Take it all in, mull it over, and above all, just have fun finding your perfect names.
Copyright 2010 Kathryn Whiteley — TwinParenthood.com
