Old-fashioned baby names back in style

WASHINGTON, April 20 (UPI) -- Old-fashioned names such as Abigail and Sadie have become popular once again for U.S. babies, author Laura Wattenberg says.

Wattenberg, author of "The Baby Name Wizard: A Magical Guide to Finding the Perfect Name for Your Baby," said people are more open to choosing these types of names because they are old enough to have fresh new meaning, The Washington Times reported Sunday.

"Old names -- like Emma -- are definitely coming back. It's made the perfect 'U' (graph). There is typically a 90-year or so period before we're willing to revive names again," Wattenberg said.

The old names have also become popular because they remind parents of a seemingly simpler time, said Nancy Schlossberg of the University of Maryland.

"We idealize previous generations especially at a nervous time like this. Picking an old name is a way to connect to what we think was a more stable time," Schlossberg told the newspaper.