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
- Baby commentary
Mael
Mael is an ancient Celtic title meaning "prince" or "chieftain" — the same root that gave us Maël in Brittany and the Irish Máel in names like Máel Sechnaill. With a 2023 peak and…
- Baby commentary
Maite
Maite (my-TAY) is a Basque name meaning "lovable" or "beloved" — and it's one of those names that lives almost entirely within Spanish-speaking communities in the United States wh…
- Baby commentary
Maizie
Maizie is a Scottish Gaelic diminutive of Margaret, specifically a pet form of Maisie derived from Mairead, with an extra Z that tips the spelling into something unexpectedly fres…
- Baby commentary
Maleah
Maleah is a Hebrew-origin name, a variant of Malia or Malea — which trace back to the Hebrew Miriam (Mary) through Hawaiian and Pacific Islander name traditions, meaning "sea of b…
- Baby commentary
Malka
Malka is a Hebrew name meaning queen — direct, unambiguous, regal. It has deep roots in Ashkenazi Jewish naming tradition and reached its current peak in 2024, suggesting that fam…
- Baby commentary
Marian
Marian is a classic that sits in interesting territory: it peaked in 1924, has over 141,000 SSA records, and carries both the Virgin Mary tradition and the Maid Marian from Robin…
- Baby commentary
Mariella
Mariella is an Italian diminutive of Maria — combining the Hebrew name Mary with the Italian diminutive suffix -ella that also appears in Arabella, Isabella, and Gabriella. It pea…
- Baby commentary
Marlon
Marlon is a name of uncertain origin — possibly a diminutive of Marc or Martin, possibly derived from the Old French place name Merlemont, or possibly an independent coinage — tha…
- Baby commentary
Mavie
Mavie is the rarest name in this batch — just 322 SSA records, all essentially current, with a 2024 peak. French in origin and meaning "my life" (from ma vie ), it sits at the int…
- Baby commentary
Mazi
Mazi is an African name with roots in Igbo, where it functions as an honorific title meaning "sir" or "master" — a term of respect applied to elders and community leaders. Ranked…
- Baby commentary
Meera
Meera peaked in 2024 — it's still climbing, still finding new families, still accumulating its story. A Sanskrit name with deep roots in South Asian devotional poetry and Hindu tr…
- Baby commentary
Menachem
Menachem is a Hebrew name meaning "comforter" or "one who brings comfort" — from the root nacham , to console. With 6,855 SSA records and steady use peaking in 2014, Menachem is a…
- Baby commentary
Merrick
Merrick is a Welsh surname name derived from the personal name Meuric , the Welsh form of Maurice — itself from Latin Mauritius , meaning "dark-skinned" or "Moorish." Ranked #1219…
- Baby commentary
Montgomery
Montgomery is an Old French place name meaning "Gomeric's hill" or "hill of the powerful man" — from the Norman surname de Montgomeri, which became the name of a Welsh castle town…
- Baby commentary
Naiari
Naiari is one of the rarest names in this entire collection — only about 261 SSA records, with a 2024 peak. It appears in Spanish naming traditions, most commonly in the Basque Co…
- Baby commentary
Nathalia
Nathalia is the Latin and Iberian spelling of Natalia — which itself derives from Latin natalis , meaning "birthday" or "pertaining to birth," specifically linked to the Nativity…
- Baby commentary
Nori
Nori is a Japanese name with multiple meaning possibilities depending on kanji selection, including rule, law, seaweed (the edible nori used in sushi), or from the longer name Nor…
- Baby commentary
Osman
Osman is the Arabic name meaning "baby bustard" or "young bustard" — referring to the large, noble bird of the steppe — carried most famously by Osman I, the founder of the Ottoma…
- Baby commentary
Princess
Princess is a word name — an Old French-derived title given as a personal name — and it has a longer American naming history than most people realize. With over 15,700 SSA records…
- Baby commentary
Ralph
Ralph peaked in 1921, has been given to 413,799 Americans across all SSA records, and is now sitting at #1152 — squarely in the "is it coming back yet?" zone that precedes every g…
How we work
Editorial policy →
Topic selection, verification, corrections.
How we gather data
Methodology →
Sources, processing pipeline, limitations.