RAPID CITY - With children whose names begin with either the letters B or K and end in the letter N, Black Hawk parents Krishna and Brian Fuller struggled to name their new baby girl.

Krishna Fuller, who has a pretty unique name herself, said they Googled "baby names" and found the name they'd been looking for - Brooklyn.

"There aren't a lot of girls' names that start with the letter B that we liked. We looked on the Internet, saw Brooklyn, and I immediately liked it," she said.

The family may have started a trend.

Brooklyn's name is ranked at 67 on the list of the nation's most popular female names. In mid-May, she she was also the second baby named after the popular New York City borough at Rapid City Regional Hospital. Brooklynn Hoffman, whose first name ranked No. 237 because of the extra ending N, was born two days before the Fuller baby.

But if you want a popular name, the Social Security Administration has the list for you.

According to the 2006 Social Security card applications, the name Jacob leads in the names of male babies born not only in South Dakota, but also in the nation.

Based on more than 4.2 million Social Security card applications for children born last year, mothers and fathers often chose Emily and Jacob, making them most popular baby names for the eighth year in a row, Michael J. Astrue, commissioner of Social Security, said.

The Social Security Administration compiled the list from all its card applications for the year 2006. Today, most children get a Social Security number assigned as part of the birth registration process, which totals more than 4 million births annually.

Jacob has been at the top of the national male list since 1999, while Emily has been the most popular female name since 1996. Jacob and Joshua also top out the most popular names for twins in the male category. Sophia broke into the top 10 for girls' names for the first time in 2006. After a one-year absence, the name William returned to the popular list as well.

In addition to a list of the 1,000 most popular baby names for 2006, there is a list of the most popular baby names for each state as well as top 100 names for twins. To view the lists, go to Social Security's Web site, www.socialsecurity.gov.

Krisha Fuller said Brooklyn joins brother Kaden and sisters Kursten and Brynn. She wasn't about to name her newborn Emily or Emma.

"I never met anyone with the same name as mine. I guess I just like different names," she said.

Most popular names

The top five baby names in South Dakota in 2006:

- Boys - Jacob, Ethan, Carter, Logan and Landon

- Girls - Emma, Hannah, Ava, Grace and Madison

The top 10 boys and girls names in the nation for 2006:

- Boys - Jacob, Michael, Joshua, Ethan, Matthew, Daniel, Christopher, Andrew, Anthony and William

- Girls - Emily, Emma, Madison, Isabella, Ava, Abigail, Olivia, Hannah, Sophia and Samantha