Hubby and I only happen to like the top baby names in England.. help!

IME children generally much prefer having a common name to an unusual one.

I teach a class with two Jadas in, and another with three Libbies. Not common names at all. How would you feel if you picked a name you loved less, then there turned out to be two of them in the class and no Amelia or Harry?

If Harry and Amelia are the only names your dh and you love, the yes, use them. Have you got a popular surname? In which case your dc may have a very widely used name combination and, depending in which field he/she may work one day, will find it harder to 'identify' him/herself. I personally prefer names that are less trendy but if there really is no other name you love, then go ahead.

Have you had a look at the ONS lists of ALL names given last year - there are lots and lots of beautiful, classic underused names there. Perhaps you'll find some inspiration there?

There is no right or wrong answer - everyone will have different views, mainly based on their own experences. Those of us who don't like having to add an initial or other modifier to our names will probably look for less common names for our own children whereas those that didn't mind will happily pick a more fashionable name for their kids.

For what its worth, there are 4 Harrys in our Beavers group and 2 of them have the same surname, so it can get a little confusing at times . So lets not forget that, whilst of course every baby is unique, their name should help to identify him/her.

IT DOESN'T MATTER!

Seriously. There are hundreds of babies- some of them are bound to have the same name. The name doesn't make the baby unique- the baby does.

My dd's best friend has the same name as her. They are at the same school doing the same A Levels, and everyone calls them Grace Squared. They like it.

For what it's worth, I don't know any Amelias and only 2 Harrys. But you could call him Henry, with Harry for short to make it a bit different?

Also,the only Amelia I've ever met is now about 23!

They are popular for a reason!

I wouldn't choose a name you like less just because these two are popular,you may end up regretting it.

My Amelia is mills or Millsy as I don't like Millie.

Could also use Leah as nn?

Fwiw there are 2 Henry's, 2 Lewis's and 2 joshuas in my dds class :-)

Ds2 is Harry and I have never met another in the 1 year we have had him.

Both my children have popular names, I chose them because I have always loved them. My name is very unusual, I grew up hating it.

One of my daughters' names - with its variants - is always trotted out on these threads as an example of one that has become ubiquitous, but she has been the only girl with that name in two entire primary schools.

this gives you both top ten lists one with spelling and one for ONS

Isabel or which ever way it is spelt is number 4 for spellings

If they are the names you like then you have to go with them? I have never really understood the need to choose names outside the top ten tbh?

FWIW ds has a name that has been top 20 for maybe the last 20 years and we have only ever met one the same age as him - whereas dd has a name that scrapes the top 50 and has another one in her class!

Harry and Amelia are both lovely btw - we know 3 Harrys but no Amelias...

I think you can tell whether a name will become massively popular or not though. I was looking at the name stats for previous years when I was pregnant in 2002, i could see that Lydia was rising slowly, two places a year. Ruby (a name I really liked) was going up 15-20 places a year. I'm a nerd though. I don't expect everybody to study the statistics like I did. I need a smiley with specs.

I do think there's a difference between classic-popular and trendy-popular. I would avoid trendy (which would later sound dated and/or naff) but classic is ok. For example, I don't think James has been out of the top 20 for a few hundred years!

You can always get a clear picture from Mumsnet about whether a name is trendy or classic.

You never know what's going to happen either. When I was at school my classmate was called Kylie which everyone thought was the maddest name ever and didn't know how to spell. She hated it for being so different! Then Kylie Minogue hit the music scene...and she hated it even more for becoming so well known!

So pick what you like because fashion is fickle.

My DDs name is not only top 10, but the name of a stripper too.
She has never met another Ruby at school in her whole 11 years of being on earth.

Gorgeous names which I agree you should definitely use if they're you're favourites. If you love hearing them it doesn't matter where they are in the popularity list. One of my own to choices if I'm lucky enough to have a future dd would be Olivia, which is in a similar situation.

Ds was born in 2011 and in our immediate 'circle' of babies (friends, groups, nursery) we know 5 Harrys and 4 Amelias!

Lovely names.
And I don't think it matters about popularity.... Ds1 is almost 12, gave him my fave name which was not on any of those lists (to the point where friends wrinkled noses and said "what?" when we told them what we'd called him) six years later it was top 5 and went on to be top boys name a couple of years ago. So owing to the fact that you can't control what anyone else does, call your dc something you want for them.

I like both Harry and Amelia and think you should just go ahead and use the names if you like them.

That happened to DD4. We met the only other one we have ever met in her class when she first went to school. They have been BFFs ever since. They are both known by NNs though.

DD3's name was in the top 10 for years and may still be for all I know. There was also another one in her class but that wasn't as much of a surprise. They use different abbreviations.

If you like them use them. The really funny thing is when people think they have been unusual and then get another in the same class. You are quite likely not to get others-especially if you think you might.

I have an Amelia. Was just outside the top 10 when I chose it and even now she's only one in her class.

Still LOVE the name :-)

Who cares if its highest on list. If you love it you may regret not using it.

My own name is very unusual - I've never met another person with my name. I have always liked my name, and thought I would avoid really popular names for my own children.

Now I have an Isobel. That spelling is not high on the list, but if you add up all the Isobel/Isabel/Isabelles it's probably even more popular than Amelia. DH and I loved the name, it felt right, we'd loved it for years, and it suits her beautifully. I never feel self-conscious about our choice. We've met another couple of Isobel/Isabelles at different groups, but she's the only one at her nursery - like other posters have said, even the most popular names are chosen by only a tiny percentage of people. It still feels unique to me, because it's unique on her. And like Amelia, it has plenty of options for nicknames if she wants to distinguish herself. Plus she has a middle name.

I think just go with whatever you love - you probably love it for some deep reason you can't even fathom and you'll risk regretting it if you don't go with your gut :)