What's so wrong about liking uncommon names?

Unless DF and I are both struck with a profound feeling of incompatibility of her name when we first meet our baby girl, all odds are pointing that she will be called Jade.

I just love everything about that name:

• It has a soft feminine ring to it, both in French and English
• Jade is a gem that inspires not only beauty, but also strength
• Green is my favorite colour
• The name is easy to spell
• The name is short
• The name keeps its meaning in French and English
• It blends well into the more complex last name without adding rhymes or another "c" or "r" : Jade Cascarano

Until lately, there was another point to that list of things I liked about that name : it had not been overused and sounded kind of different. I did not hear about anyone who knew a "Jade" until recently. I spoke to daycare educators and they all said they didn't have any in their groups... yet!

Then, I saw the latest statistical update for 2009 names given in Quebec and was struck in shock...

Jade was the FIFTH most popular name given to baby girls in the last year!

That bothers me. I know it shouldn't but still... it's not like it was the 25th... NO! We're really talking about the 5th most popular name of last year. Do I still like that name? Absolutely! Do I like it less? Well... The name itself is the same, but I really wish it were less popular.

I wanted my daughter to forge her identity and personality around a name that suited her like a glove and made her feel unique. If you found as many jades as you would find rocks laying around, would they still be considered gems or would they be tossed around like vulgar green pieces of rocks ? Whether I like it or not, rarity does play a certain role in my appreciation of the name and I was profoundly disappointed to learn that in a few years from now, there might be 2-3 other girls with the same name as our little one in her class.

So that's all leaving me a bit confused. Whenever I tell someone about my disappointment, it seems like I always get the all white or all black answer:

• Some will tell me to start reading baby names book while I still have time to think and find another, better name.
• Others will simply not care and not understand why I want my baby's name to feel a little more "rare" and "unique".

The problem is, I can't seem to be able to simply disregard the sudden news of popularity of the name. Yet, I also don't see how I could find a name that would fit our baby better. Now that I've twirled my mind around that name, it belongs to her and I'm reluctant to even open the discussion about considering other names, unless I'm really struck by one that would outshine Jade... which has not happened yet.