Every so often a trend pops up that really starts to irk me, and here’s one: Kai.
Now I’ll admit, I’m a bit name obsessed, and can be more than a little judgemental about the issue. So here’s the thing...I like the name Kai, or at least I did. Apparently, every YA author out there liked the name Kai too.
According to BabyNameFacts.com, Kai is the 205th most popular boys name in the U.S. but I’ll bet it’s more popular in literature. Why? My guess is that authors seek a cool name that can apply with ease to a surprisingly wide demographic (for example meanings in Hawaiian and Welsh), but also a name that isn’t too common. You want your male lead to stand out. So maybe more common names like Ben, or Jake show up more often, but they don’t stick out like Kai.
Here's half a dozen of the Kai examples out there:
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| Prince Kai |
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| Ky...different spelling still counts! |
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| Kai short for Kaidan...still counts! |
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| Kai Zōu |
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| Childhood sweetheart...Kai |
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| Best friend...Kai |
Do you see what I mean?! And Kai's not the only name gaining rapid popularity in YA lit, I'm looking at
you Finn. Don't think I haven't noticed.
So what about you guys? Any other naming trends jump out at you?
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