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Jacob, Noah, Daniel Top 2011 List of Popular Baby Names

Social Security Administration's List Shows Shift From New Testament, to Old Testament Names

The Social Security Administration has released the list of the most popular baby names of 2011, and as usual, names with biblical origins populate the top 10 list. The new trend appears to be, however, that Old Testament names have become popular with parents.

According to the Social Security Administration (SSA), Jacob, a patriarch of the Old Testament, came in as the most popular boy's name last year.

"This is the thirteenth year in a row Jacob tops our list for boys and the first year for Sophia, who knocks Isabella to number two after a two-year stint at the top of our list for girls," the SSA wrote in a press release.

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According to The Washington Post, four of the top 10 names for boys are biblical. These names include, besides Jacob, Noah, Daniel, and Ethan.

Elijah was ranked at number 13 and Joshua at number 14 -- also Old Testament figures.

Female names take on variations of classically biblical names, with Isabella, the Spanish version of Elizabeth, John the Baptist's mother, ranking number two on the girls' list.

Ranking number five is Ava, a variation on Eve, and ranking number seven is Abigail, another Old Testament figure.

Laura Wattenberg, creator of the website babynamewizard.com, told The Associated Press that many parents are choosing to return to Old Testament names found in the Hebrew Bible, as they have long remained unused.

"The traditional biblical names were New Testament names -- John, James and Mary and Elizabeth," Wattenberg told the AP. "Today, the hot names are all names from the Old testament precisely because they were neglected for so many generations."

Not all names topping the list revolved around the Bible, however. The administration observed that reality TV programs, such as "Keeping Up With the Kardashians," had an effect on the popularity of baby names.

The name of Kourtney Kardashian's two-year-old son, Mason, jumped 10 spots, now sitting as the second most popular name for boys in 2011.

Similarly, the name Briella proved to be the fastest moving name, jumping 394 spots to number 497. Briella Calafiore stars in the reality show "Jerseylicious," which films New Jersey stylists battling it out for success.

As Wattenberg told the AP, baby names are very telling as to how popular culture affects Americans.

"It shows what we're paying attention to, what we're thinking about," she said.

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