Author

Ivy Hung
Data Journalist
Based in Arizona, USA
Ivy is a data journalist based in Arizona, United States. A business school graduate now working her way into tech, she spent her early career in product marketing, project management, and marketing strategy — roles where reading a name the same way you read a brand became second nature.
She joined NamesPop because the name datasets sit at exactly the intersection she cares about: consumer behaviour, cultural identity, and what numbers tell us about decisions families make quietly, one at a time. Her writing leans on SSA and municipal pet registries the way a marketer reads a segmentation report — looking for the audiences hiding inside the aggregate.
Cross-cultural naming is her main beat, with a particular interest in how Hispanic, Asian-American, and bicultural families navigate the tension between heritage and assimilation in the American Southwest.
2,409
Total pieces
140
Articles
1,119
Baby commentary
1,150
Pet commentary
Ivy Hung's contributions
- Articleculture
Zoë Kravitz, Harry Styles, and the Met Gala Ring: What Celebrity Engagements Do to Name Shelf Life
Celebrity engagements don't just trend on social media — they extend a name's cultural shelf life. Zoë and Harry are the latest proof.
·10 min read
- Articleculture
Cannes 2026 Honored Peter Jackson, John Travolta, Barbra Streisand: Three Generations of Hollywood Names
Cannes 2026's honorary honorees span 60 years of cinema. What do Peter, John, and Barbra tell us about names that outlast their moments?
·10 min read
- Articleculture
Ella Langley Just Won 7 ACM Awards: The Country-Music Pipeline of Baby Names
Ella Langley swept the ACMs with 7 wins. The name Ella has been a top-10 fixture for a decade — and country music is a big reason why.
·10 min read
- Articleculture
Memorial Day's Forgotten Naming Power: Honoring Veterans Through Names
Memorial Day carries a naming legacy most Americans overlook. From Valor to Grant, discover how patriotic and honor names are quietly surging.
·10 min read
- Articleculture
The Double-Name TikTok Discourse: Why Mary Love Just Re-Lit a 200-Year Southern Tradition
Mary Love, Lily Grace, Anna Kate — double first names are trending on TikTok. Here's the 200-year Southern tradition behind the trend and why it's spreading beyond the South.
·10 min read
- Articleculture
Luminous Names: Why Soleil, Solana, and Lumi Are the Names of a Sun-Starved Generation
Soleil, Solana, Lumi, and their light-bearing kin are among the fastest-rising names of 2025. Here's the cultural and data story behind a generation reaching toward the sun.
·10 min read
- Articleculture
The Joybait Baby Name Trend Has Gone Mainstream: Why Truce Just Jumped 11,000 Spots
The "joybait" naming aesthetic — names that project wholesomeness and hope — has crossed from TikTok niche to mainstream. Truce's 11,000-spot SSA jump is the data proof.
·10 min read
- Articleculture
Alexandra Capitanescu Made Romania Cool Again: Romanian Names for an American Audience
Romania finished third at Eurovision 2026. Alexandra Capitanescu's performance has opened American curiosity toward Romanian names — here's what's actually worth considering.
·10 min read
- Articleculture
Noam Bettan, Michelle, and Israel's Second-Place Eurovision Heartbreak
Israel finished #2 at Eurovision 2026 with Noam Bettan's performance of "Michelle." The name Noam — ancient Hebrew, meaning pleasantness — is having an unexpected American moment.
·9 min read
- Articleculture
Bulgaria Won Eurovision With Bangaranga: What DARA Does for Bulgarian Names in America
Bulgaria's DARA won Eurovision 2026 with "Bangaranga," sending Bulgarian name searches surging. Here's what this means for names like Dara, Ivanka, and Boyana in America.
·10 min read
- Articleculture
Paco Lopez Won the Preakness: The Most Charming Spanish Nickname Americans Ignore
Paco Lopez rode Napoleon Solo to Preakness glory. His name is a case study in how Spanish naming culture operates — and why 'Paco' deserves more recognition in the U.S.
·9 min read
- Articleculture
The European Name Gap: Why Americans Are Finally Ready for Mats, Sigrid, and Aino
For the first time since the 1920s, American parents are genuinely open to European names that don't feel Anglo — Nordic, Iberian, and Finnish names are all gaining ground.
·10 min read
- Articleculture
The "Happiness Is a Healthy Pet" Thesis: What We Name Pets When We're Lonely vs. When We're Thriving
National Pet Week's 2026 theme sparked a question: do pandemic-era pet names — heavy on human names like Henry and Olivia — reveal something about loneliness?
·10 min read
- Articleculture
Boy George Is Representing San Marino at Eurovision: What Happens When Drag and Camp Reshape a Name
Boy George performs at Eurovision 2026 for San Marino — and suddenly the name George means two very different things at once.
·10 min read
- Articleculture
Eurovision 2026: The Most Name-Worthy Contestants, Ranked
Eurovision 2026 in Vienna brought 35 countries and a few genuinely great baby names. Ivy ranks the most name-worthy contestants for American parents considering their options.
·10 min read
- Articleculture
From Klarity to Nevaeh: How Invented Baby Names Are Rewriting the Spelling Rulebook
Nevaeh peaked at rank 25 in 2010. Klarity is 2025's fastest-rising invented spelling. What phonetic creativity tells us about who names are really for.
·10 min read
- Articleculture
What We Name Our Mothers: Eve, Mary, Nora & the Names That Carry the Weight of Maternity
Mary ranked #1 for 66 years. Nora is at rank 22. Eve never left. What the names society codes as "maternal" reveal about how we want motherhood to look.
·10 min read
- Articleculture
Why Charlotte Just Dethroned Emma After Six Years — And What It Tells Us About Royal Name Influence
Charlotte's rise to #2 in the 2025 SSA data isn't random. It's a textbook example of the Royal Lag — the 5-8 year delay between a British royal birth and peak US adoption.
·9 min read
- Articleculture
Rose vs. Royce: What the Names Rebel Wilson Chose for Her Two Daughters Say About Modern Celebrity Naming
Rebel Wilson's daughters are Rose Estelle and Royce Lillian — matching initials, completely different vibes. This is the new celebrity naming playbook.
·9 min read
- Articleculture
The Skeleton Gown Theory of Naming: What Beyoncé Wears to the Met Gala Tells Us About Name Trends
Met Gala fashion foreshadows baby name trends 18-24 months later. The 2026 Costume Art theme may be quietly predicting the names of 2027.
·9 min read
How we work
Editorial policy →
Topic selection, verification, corrections.
How we gather data
Methodology →
Sources, processing pipeline, limitations.