Your Name is Disappearing From Planet Earth

"If you'll be my bodyguard,

I can be your long-lost pal,

I can call you Betty,

and Betty, when you call me,

you can call me Al."

- You Can Call Me Al, by Paul Simon.

Wait. Who?

Al! You know, Al!

Names are quickly becoming endangered

MSN is reporting that many "old-timey" names are disappearing and on the verge of going away forever.

Al tops the list of male names that are disappearing, along with Bernie, Bert, Bob, and Chuck.

On the female side, these names are falling by the wayside: Bess, Cathy, Chrisie, Diedre, and Dori.

Other male-endangered names include Dom, Hal, Mel, Mitch, and Phil.

Female names that seem to be going away are Gail, Jeanie, Judi, Kerri, and Meg.

Why are these names disappearing?

Many of these names topped popular names lists generations ago, but now they've really fallen out of popularity.

When was the last time you heard a baby named Al or Bess?

MSN, using reports from the Social Security Administration, says fewer than 20 babies each year in the USA are being given these names. A hundred years ago, it was more than 70,000!

So, you can call me Al, but I might be the only one!

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What baby names are most popular?

The Daily Mail says the most popular baby names in the USA right now for boys are Liam, Noah, Oliver, James, and Elijah.  For girls, the list includes Olivia, Emma, Charlotte, Amelia, and Sophia.

What baby names have become popular in your family?

SOURCE: MSN.com