How popular is your name? It depends on when you were born.

Certain traditional names, such as Robert, James, and David were strong choices in the 1940s and 1950s and for many decades before that. In fact, from the 1880s through the 1950s, the name John stayed in the top 10 of all baby boys named in the U.S. Mary also had a long run and held the number #1 place for girls from 1917 through 1961 with just a few years of “Linda”s at #1 in the middle.

The Social Security Administration keeps track of the most popular names each year, and if interested, you can see their list.

Mary is no longer even in the top 100 of baby girl names. She’s been replaced by names such as Paisley at #39, Aubrey at #13, Isabella at #5, and Sophia at #1.

In the 1960s, names changed. There was a wider variety, and more original names began to flourish – and that trend has continued. Compared to the 1950s, when a quarter of all babies were given one of the top 10 baby names, the top 10 names on the current list now apply to only one-tenth of all babies.

Can we credit (or blame) the peace/love generation for more creative name choices? Certainly there are a few Willows, Harmonys, Moonbeams and Serenitys in their 50s today who can thank their parents.

Goldman Sachs has put the trend toward unusual names in the context of seeing a name as a “brand.” Quoted in an article on time.com, Goldman Sachs suggests there could be two reasons: First, parents naming children in the U.S. are more diverse themselves. Second, parents see names as a “brand” for their child and want differentiation. They don’t want their child to be one of five Jennifers in the classroom – or, at the park, don’t want to call out “Christopher” and have multiple little boys answer.

In the past, family monikers often dictated what a child would be named, but now inspiration can come from almost anywhere. Beyonce naming her baby “Blue” started a fad of names that are colors: Red, Ebony, Ivory, etc. Entertainers’ names are popular, as they always have been. (If not for Clark Gable, who would name a little baby Clark?) Sports stars’ name are popular (there is a sharp rise in LeBrons, for example). Old fashioned names such as Eleanor and Amelia are experiencing a resurgence. And some people think a concern for the environment is prompting nature-type names:  Cloud, Storm, Forest, and Sky. In the year of the eclipse, some parents chose names such as Luna, Soleil, Nova and, yes, Eclipse.

Babycenter.com conducted a survey of 500 of parents in their network. Names submitted at least three times include Charisma, Dynasty, Heiress, and Huxley, for girls – and Bexley, Falcon, and Haze for boys.

Try those on for size, John.