My presentation examines the phonology of the most popular first names of Finnish children born during the years 2000 - 2020. The name data came from Finnish Digital and Population Data Services Agency, and includes 2100 names. I especially use the terms name type (cf. Sartjärvi 2013) and name category. Name categories consist of names with the same phonological structures, e.g. Category Eetu consists of two syllable names with a long vowel and a vowel at the end. The subtypes of categories then consist of names with a particular phonological element. For example, Subtype Eetu consists of names with the long vowel ee and a vowel at the end (e.g. Eetu, Seela). Name categories can be used for classifying Finnish first names based on their phonological structure, whereas name types can be used as a tool to describe changes in the popularity of Finnish first names. 

     Rare and unique names have become more common in the 2000s (Saarelma-Paukkala 2017). These include new invented names as well as old names that have risen in popularity, because their phonology is similar to common names (for. ex. Ella has been common all through the 2000s and now Hilla and Nella are common too.)

      Finnish name trends in the 2000s is the e trend (e.g. Eetu, Ella, Emilia) (cf. Saarelma-Paukkala 2017 and Porkka 2019). I focus on names with ee (for ex. Eetu, Eelis, Veera). I focus on the voiced geminate consonants ll, mm and nn and consonant clusters lm, lj and nj. I'll investigate why these phonological structures are trending.

References

Saarelma-Paukkala, Minna 2017. Etunimikirja. Suomalaiset nimitrendit 2000-luvulla. SKS, Helsinki.

Sartjärvi, Maija 2013. Kahden etunimityypin yleistyminen ja suosionvaihtelu. Virittäjä 117 (1), 44–69. Access: https://journal.fi/virittaja/article/view/7844/6017?acceptCookies=1