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Find baby name inspiration and advice on the Mumsnet Baby Names forum.

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Find baby name inspiration and advice on the Mumsnet Baby Names forum.

Baby names

Is my name too popular?

62 replies

flossyflo · 05/03/2013 15:33

34 weeks pregnant and thought we had it all sorted...

Girls name chosen as Isla months ago (in all honesty I had the gmail account already registered a few years ago not that husband knew that).

But... am now having second thoughts as just checked the ONS website and found it is ranked number 15...

Should this affect my decision. I always loved having a more unusual name and would like daughter to feel the same.

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Dillydollydaydream · 05/03/2013 15:38

It's a lovely name. My top girls name is in the top 30 but I've loved it for ages so I'll still use it.

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toobreathless · 05/03/2013 15:56

Honestly......

I think it's faddy, will date and two a penny. It is very 'right now' and will date in a way that equally popular girls names won't because they have pretty much always been popular such as Emily & Charlotte.

BUT it is popular for a reason, it's a very pretty yet strong girls name that suits a little girl and will equally suit a grown women.

That's not much use is it....

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flossyflo · 05/03/2013 16:45

oh god. oh god. think you might be right... faddy is not good.

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Yannah2006 · 05/03/2013 16:50

I think it's very pretty, but yes, very faddy. I wouldn't use it even though i think it's lovely. I see it as the equivalent of Claire, Elizabeth, or Louise- i know millions of those.

I sodding hate it when that happens! DS1 has a name that wasn't that popular when we named him. 7 years on, i think it's ranked around number 20

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RunnerHasbeen · 05/03/2013 16:55

Number 15 isn't the same proportion of the population as when we were young though, the spectrum is much wider now.

I think it depends where you are in the country. Also, how would you feel if you didn't use it and then someone else you were close to did - would you feel a wee bit sad that you gave up on it?

We discounted a lovely boy name because of the ranking (had a DD anyway, so it didn't matter) but when I have met one I didn't think "Ha, how unoriginal," I actually respect the mother a bit more for not getting bogged down in figures and other opinions and just going for a nice name. Step away from the statistics!

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flossyflo · 05/03/2013 17:07

I just know I'd hate it if she had to be referred to as Isla S because there was another Isla in the same class....

Although after reading up on it, does seem that there is a much wider proliferation of names these days so this is less likely to occur.

Guess it depends on how tied I am to the name... DH is Scottish so we were going to do a Scottish islands theme, Harris for a future boy and Muck and Eigg for future pets. Although do know Scottish island is actually spelled Islay.... but hey ho.

Any ideas how I can find out popular the name is in my region?

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HappyJoyful · 05/03/2013 17:10

I had it on my list, but vetoed by DH. Have to say, I do agree it's one of those that I think of now as 'faddy' of 'our time' not that should stop you. I've heard a few in the last year or so, so on the increase.

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givemeaclue · 05/03/2013 17:10

There are 3 in my daughters class.

What about Iona, popular in Scotland but less so out of Scotland.

On national statistics website you can search by region but only England, Scotland, Wales etc

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afrikat · 05/03/2013 17:15

I was at a party of 18 girls on Saturday. 5 of us had the same name or a variant of it (think a popular name beginning with K). I work in a very male dominated environment but of the few females 4 of us have the same name. I can't say it's ever bothered me! Tho it does cause some confusion amongst others...

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Yfronts · 05/03/2013 21:00

Sorry I know 5 Islas but then it is a lovely name for a good reason. Other nice names are Iona and

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ladymia · 05/03/2013 21:39

Sorry but I think it's both popular and faddy too.

I think Isla is the "Megan" and "Tracey" of our time

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drownangels · 05/03/2013 21:43

I don't know anyone called that. So I would use it.

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thegreylady · 05/03/2013 21:49

Iona?
Skye?

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sausagesandwich34 · 05/03/2013 21:52

I know 2 people called Isla with a 25 year age gap

If you like the name use it

My dd2 has a name that was 3rd in her birth year and is still top 10 but she is the only one in her primary school

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LadyWidmerpool · 05/03/2013 21:52

It's a million times nicer than a lot of 'MN' names and there aren't any in my daughter's nursery! Her name is maybe top 30 and there are two in the nursery so I think it's luck of the draw. I wouldn't be put off.

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scaevola · 05/03/2013 21:55

I don't think if it as faddy, as I only know one (aged about 8).

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BikeRunSki · 05/03/2013 22:01

How about Iona instead? Also a Scottish island, but far less popular as a name (but beautiful).

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TenthMuse · 05/03/2013 22:17

Agree with toobreathless - it is pretty but very faddy. Every other new baby I meet/read about seems to be called Isla. Lots of celebs have chosen it too, it seems, so it's getting a lot of exposure at the moment. Reminds me of Ruby, which also came from nowhere and suddenly became ultra popular.

That said, as others have pointed out, popular names are generally popular because they're nice! If you're sure it's 'the one', use it.

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MidnightMasquerader · 06/03/2013 00:56

Agree, very faddy. It's a lovely name, but it's sort become a bit, 'mmm, nice' on account of being so widely used. I'm well outside the UK, too.

As for how popular it is your region - this is a bit of a red herring. Nobody remembers whether Claire, Karen, Sarah, Lisa, etc, were more or less popular in region X or Y; they simply associate them with a particular era/generation of girls...

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catlady1 · 06/03/2013 01:08

It's a lovely name but a bit predictable. I work in a nursery that takes about sixty children and I think there are three Islas, which, when you think of all the thousands and thousands of possible names, is a lot really. I also feel like I hear about a lot of babies being born called Isla lately. BUT that being said, don't let it put you off if you really love the name and have for a while - if you've become set on it you might regret not using it, and there's nothing to say it will stay as popular even for another year.

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echidnakid · 06/03/2013 04:53

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

ripsishere · 06/03/2013 04:56

I think it's a lovely name. I only know one, born to a fiercely Scot mother and an 'I;m so enraptured with my DD I'll go along with anything dad'.
We are abroad though so not entirely representative.

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magichamster · 06/03/2013 05:12

If you love it then use it.

My DS has a really common name, according to the name lists. It's a name we both loved for years and really suits him. In his class he is 'Bert A' (obviously not the actual name!) as there are 2 of them,but there are 350 kids at his school and they are the only 2.

At one of ds2's clubs there are 2 children with the same name, but it's a really unusual name. I'd have been more gutted if I'd have given my dc what I thought was a really unusual name, only to find another.

Also remember that the name lists are not always entirely accurate. Each entry is for that only spelling. So for example, Lily can be Lily, Lilly, Lillie, Lilley, not to mention all the Lily-May's, but would all be counted as different names. Isla (and my son's name) only really have one spelling, and no obvious abbreviations (e.g. Ben/Benjamin) so maybe appears more popular than it really is.

HTH

I love it by the way

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googietheegg · 06/03/2013 05:20

V good point magichamster. I think Isla is lovely.

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weegiemum · 06/03/2013 05:44

I like it, but I'm in Scotland where Isla could be 1, or 7, or 15, or 28, or 50+. It's timeless where I live, but I can see how it would be faddy elsewhere. All 3 of my dc (9,11,13) have an Isla as a friend. We considered it for dd1 but went with another name in the end.

If you like island names, as you said (and I used to live in Harris, awesome name!) what about Iona, Skye or Rona/Rhona. Or a name that's popular there - Eilidh, Rowan, Catriona, Anna, C/Katherine, Isabel, Marion, Mhairi?