Why do so many people choose the same names?

I deliberately chose enduringly classic/popular names. I didn't want a name that would lead to people making judgements about by children when they were older- I wanted a name that would be a blank canvas for them to make their own impression with.

My DC has one of the names on OP's list. At the time I didn't know anyone with that name. I read that these popularity surges with names can be as a result of a type of "critical mass" where a name that was previously not heard for many years can be chosen individually by different people without seemingly having a catalyst for this happening - hence Ava/Eva type names - very pretty names but uncommon for many decades. I suppose I am a little disappointed (despite my username) at how popular DC's name became but I still like it as a name.

Popular names are popular because they are nice!!!

We loved dd1's name and didn't want to use anything else. It's super popular and we always come across people called it. I truly don't mind tho - means she's 'normal' - I couldn't bear her to be the weird kid with the weird name and no friends.
Also it's her amazing personally, abilities and kindness that mark her out as an exceptional, memorable person, not her having a random made up name.

I always wonder why people have to try so hard to be different? It always looks a little desperate to me when you see a parent has clearly just chosen the most random name they can think of. if you love it then fine but many choose just to be 'different'.

My DS has one of the top 5 names, yet in his social circle and within our circle of friends/neighbours/acquaintances we don't know anyone else with the same name (except a dog - does that count ).

Equally my DH has one of the top 5 names from the 60s and every other man (inc my brother) we know seems to have the same name - on our small estate they are known as Big X, New X, etc .

I would far rather give a chlld a popular name than some of the weird, far out names you hear.

You don't know that will happen. The number one name in DS1's birth year, there's only one in his 3 form entry, but there's several with his name - which was after a contemporary of DH's, so in use for years.

Both parents have to like the name too, of course.

I had no idea dd 2's name was popular until I went to register her birth and the registrar said she was the 6th on that week and it was only Tuesday!

I worked full time and dd1 went to a childminder so I was very unaware of name trends

Dd2 has the 2nd most popular name in her birth year -she was the only one in her year at primary, there is one other in her year at secondary but they aren't in any classes together

I don't get it either OP!

I have an extremely common name. There are variations of it in my family. It travels well so it's popular in many countries. Walk down a busy street and you'll hear it several times. Some people call my name classic, I call it boooring.

A lot of it is down to fashion IMO - agree with a pp who said that names grow on you as you hear them. I remember when MIL gave us a list with her top 10 names for our 1st DC - she doesn't watch TV, barely uses the Internet or reads a paper but her chosen names were all on the top 20!

If i liked a name i would use, regardless of how many people i knew with it or how popular it was

My husband has the most common name in the world (there's a TV channel called it!) and I have an unusual Irish name. Our son is going to have a simple name.

I like my name but I don't love it. No one gets it right, no one can spell it and it's quite childish. I hate the shortened version as well. Combined with my married surname, I have to spell everything out.

I'd love a simple/common name like Grace, Katie, Olivia. It's great to call your kid something special but they are the ones living with it for the rest of their lives.

Ooh good suggestion Superbean, sounds like a good read. I defiantly agree having a super popular name is much better than the one which you have to spell every damn time ! I guess it just surprises me when a friend has yet another Isabelle (beautiful though it is). That said when I was in school there was only one Isabelle. My kids have super traditional but not that common names from my country, so I haven't strayed to far from the tree. I guess I do have a preference for unusual names, as I always always enjoy finding out names at toddler groups, favourites recently have been Atticus, Clemency and Electra

It was important to me that we chose a less common name. We discounted anything in the top 100 (although my partner suddenly came out with Edward the moment our son was born!), and ended up calling him the name we'd decided on previously. I adore his name. Really really love it.

You should read Freakonomics (sp?) there's a chapter dealing with predicting names, based on what parents see as aspirational.

Don't mind admitting that I'm slap bang middle class demographics, the majority of children in our school have very traditional names, in a year group of 30 we have 5 boys called William.

I think there are names that are fashionable, and names that we associate with positive or negative things. I just wanted simple, classic names that my children wouldn't always have to spell.

Popular names are popular for a reason, they sound nice.

I have 4 DSs, one of them has a name which has been consistently in the top 30 or so since the beginning of time, however, I've never come across another in his class/activities etc etc. OTOH, my son with the least common name (way outside of top 100) is one of five in his class! Just the way the cookie crumbles sometimes. I don't mind in the slightest, I didn't choose his name based on 'uniqueness' he was actually named after my favourite singer who happened to be playing when he was conceived

As an owner of a popular named child , all I can say is we didn't really know. To be fair, it was so hard finding a name we both liked and sounded good in both our languages that I think we would have probably have gone for it anyway had we known.

She likes her name and quite likes meeting people with the same name. If/when she decides to hate it, she can always use her much-more-unusual-but-still-a-real-name middle name.

It depends on where you live too. My DC go to a school with lots of hippyish parents. You're pretty safe with a top ten name there but the multiples are all the more unusual names - does make me snigger!

I had an unusual name and hated it so much I changed it to a more 'regular' name

I agree with OP
I have a name that's not that uncommon but the spelling is youneek. I can almost always get my name as usernames/email addresses but never on key rings.

Last week a spoke to someone with the same name as me for the first time ever because she used one of my email addresses by accident. She's American and there are more of them over there.

I've never really been a fan of common names and I didn't really think it was a good thing that there were several Connors and Alfies and Adams in my classes.

I wonder the same thing, especially now DC1 is older and at school and there are reams of children with the same names.

Not to say that crazily spelled, "unique" names are somehow better, but there's a middle ground between "made up" and "ubiquitous", right?

So many perfectly lovely, classic names just sound dull and basic to me now.

Fully accept that this is my issue and not everyone feels like I do. Nor do I wrinkle my nose when I meet yet another Isabella, Emily, George or William

I've always thought the opposite, actually - that it's unfair to give a child a name that will result in people asking "What?" when they tell them what it is. Far better to be Little Grace/Grace B, I think, than the only Sugarlump-Honeypie in the class.....

They don't look at the top 100 name lists I guess. I didn't know any children when I had ds so just avoided anything in the list. Didn't want anything too popular.

Not sure why people still pick popular names for second dc's though, especially when they've seen the same ones crop up at toddler groups or school. Personally I think it's easier to have a more identifiable name instead of Jack A or B or Grace Y or Z.

We picked a name only to find its very popular. Still a good name though!

My ds is called Oliver, he is 14.
When he was born in 2003 it was not at all popular, I just loved it
Mil hated it ( tough tits ) but has denied saying this ever since.

He's the only Oliver in his high school and I still love the name, it has been number one boys name several times so I'm sure there are lots of littler Olivers around.

I do think that if you think like that then you're never going to be able to find a name you love.
I had my dd's name in my head from when I was a little girl and luckily my dp absolutely liked it too, it's pretty and classic and suits her. She's the only one in her class with her name but there are 2/3 older dc with her name in her primary.

The only name in her class that has multiple dc is "Mia"

My son has a popular name (one of the classics). Actually in this generation, such a wide range of names are used that there are unlikely to be loads of any name in one class and so far we haven't come across many others. My husband grew up with a common name and others in his class and quite liked it, they ended up being friends etc. When it came to naming our son we preferred to give him a name we both loved that was popular than choosing something we liked less just to be "unique".

OP I wonder exactly the same thing

I have an unusual name and licked very popular top ten names for my dk. I hated having an unusual name and I like dk having a name that they can do anything with and personalise their own way with nicknames.