Author
Jack Lin
Founder & Editor-in-Chief
Based in Taipei, Taiwan
Jack is a software engineer based in Taipei, Taiwan. He built NamesPop because the naming tools he found online all felt the same: slow, ad-heavy, and better at gathering SEO keywords than answering a parent's actual question.
He spends most of his writing time on trend analysis, data provenance, and the question of how software changes the small family decisions that used to happen in living rooms. Lately he has been thinking about how algorithms shape naming itself — what it means when a top-100 list starts to feel like a recommendation engine.
He lives with a rabbit named Money, which is where most of his pet-naming opinions come from.
2,387
Total pieces
131
Articles
1,085
Baby commentary
1,171
Pet commentary
Jack Lin's contributions
- ArticleOpinion
The Case for Naming Your Dog After a Hockey Enforcer
During NHL playoff season, here's an opinionated argument for giving your dog a bold, gritty name with real bite.
·8 min read
- ArticleOpinion
Why Vargas's 27-Game Streak Won't Save the Name Ildemaro
Ildemaro Vargas hit in 27 straight games and no one talked about his name. Here's why some great athlete names never move the birth data.
·8 min read
- Articleanalysis
Knicks Sweep the Cavs: What a 4-0 Means for Cleveland Names
The Cavaliers get swept, and Ohio's naming patterns become the story. A data dive into Midwestern baby name culture.
·9 min read
- Articleanalysis
Josh Jung's Hot Streak and the Plainspoken Josh Era
Josh Jung is mashing in 2026 — but can a classic like Josh hold its ground when naming culture keeps chasing novelty?
·9 min read
- Articleanalysis
Ozzie Albies Is Mashing: Is Ozzie a Pet or Baby Name?
Ozzie's career year sparks the best naming debate of the season: does this retro charmer belong in a nursery or on a collar?
·8 min read
- Articleanalysis
Otto Lopez Leads MLB in Hits: Otto's Quiet Comeback
Otto Lopez's breakout shines a light on a vintage name's modern revival. SSA data shows the trajectory — and it's climbing.
·9 min read
- Articleanalysis
Taylor Townsend at Roland Garros: The Unisex Name Boom
Taylor was once 90% female. Then 90% male. Now it's genuinely split. Here's what 40 years of SSA data reveals about America's unisex name journey.
·9 min read
- Articleanalysis
Sinner Chases a Career Slam: Italian Boy Names Surging
Jannik Sinner's Roland Garros run is putting Italian boy names in the spotlight. Here are the melodic picks climbing US charts.
·9 min read
- Articleanalysis
Canadiens vs Hurricanes: French-Canadian Names Heat Up
Montreal's deep NHL run is reigniting interest in Quebec's rich naming heritage. Here's what the data says about French-Canadian names.
·9 min read
- Articleanalysis
Thunder vs Spurs: Two Cities, Two Naming Cultures
OKC and San Antonio are battling in the West Finals. Their naming cultures couldn't be more different — and both are fascinating.
·9 min read
- Articleanalysis
Jalen Brunson's Knicks Run: Is Jalen the Name of 2026?
Jalen Brunson is carrying New York. Is his name carrying with him? We dig into SSA data to see if deep playoff runs move baby names.
·9 min read
- Articleanalysis
Knicks Reach First Finals Since 1999: The Name Time Capsule
The Knicks are back. So are the baby names from 1999. Explore which late-90s names are cycling back into style.
·9 min read
- Articleanalysis
The Top 10 Sports Names of May 2026 (And Whether They Belong to a Baby or a Dog)
From Jannik to Napoleon Solo, May 2026 delivered a remarkable run of sports names. Here's what the data says about which ones work for babies vs. dogs.
·11 min read
- Baby commentary
Amiah
Amiah sits at rank 1,671 with 4,681 total SSA uses — a name that has grown steadily since the early 2000s, driven partly by phonetic proximity to the enormously popular Amia, Amay…
- Baby commentary
Asia
Asia has 32,404 births in the SSA record and currently ranks at 1,689 — a number that reflects a significant drop from the name's peak in the 1990s and early 2000s, when it was a…
- Baby commentary
Azula
Azula ranks at #1,644 with 600 total births — one of the most striking examples in recent SSA data of a fictional villain's name crossing into genuine baby name use, carried entir…
- Baby commentary
Caitlin
Something happened to Caitlin around 1988. The name, which had been climbing steadily since the mid-1970s, hit its SSA peak that year and became one of the defining girls' names o…
- Baby commentary
Chevy
Chevy ranks at #1,660 in the SSA database with 3,678 total uses across both genders — a name that carries the weight of American car culture, a beloved comedian, and a medieval En…
- Baby commentary
Cosmo
Cosmo peaked in 2022. Not 1952, not 1985 — 2022. That single data point tells you almost everything about where this name has been and where it is going. With 2,869 total SSA birt…
- Baby commentary
Deegan
Deegan has 3,379 total SSA uses at rank 1,674 — an Irish-origin surname-name that has been threading its way into American baby naming over the past two decades, carried along by…
How we work
Editorial policy →
Topic selection, verification, corrections.
How we gather data
Methodology →
Sources, processing pipeline, limitations.