Are popular names really all that bad?

Exactly!

If the name is very popular, eventually the fashion will change, and that name will be linked with an age group.
The names that were popular when I was born now say 'woman aged about 50'.
They're still nice names - 'they were popular for a reason'.

I have a unique name in this country (but very common in my parents' home country) and I really like the fact that when someone says it, they mean me. I don't mind having to spell it out all the time, it's really a minor inconvenience.

I had 3 Laurens and two Lauras in my primary school class. I think the downside might be that they were all unique kids but were unfortunately lumped into a group based on nothing more than their parents' choice of name (they were called "the laurens and lauras"). Maybe not a big deal, but I certainly was not grouped like that, ever.

To be honest with the rise of the internet, search engines etc having a less unique name may be a massive blessing.

Our DS has a "popular" name and I understand why it's popular as we still love it.

His best mate has a very unique name and then came along another lad with the same name and same spelling in their class - luck of the draw. I'm not sure kids care. I especially find it weird this trend of people hunting down unpopular names, surely you pick a name you like and you are done.

Go for what you like. There were 4 Helens in my class, and none of them suffered trauma as a result

Names are popular cause lots of people like them.

So the opposite of bad.

My kids have very normal but uncommon names (think Peter and Jane). They would far rather be called Olivia and Max 😂

Popular names are popular for a reason! Fashion

I was always one of two of my name. I didn't mind. Dd was one of three Lucys so was Lucy J. She has never complained about. (She would if she minded.)

I think the social and geographically factors are also interesting. Here in a fairly low income part of Central Scotland,Olivias and Georges are not thick on the ground. In fact,I've only ever met one Olivia and only elderly Georges.

My kids are adults now but amongst their peer group popular names were Ellie,Kirsty/Kirsten,Lucy,Hannah,Sarah,Molly,Finlay,BenDaniel,Kyle,Andrew,Connor,James, Angus

This group is now having their own children and names are Archie,Finn,Ava,Isla,Noah

I'm sorry but that's ridiculous snobbery. Of course the 'majority' are going to pick the top 10 names. That's literally how statistics work. Once people stop using those names so much and they fall out of favour, different names that didn't use to be so popular take their place and become the new top ten, picked by the 'majority'. It cycles round in trends (and some of the names you mention were ridiculously popular themselves once upon a time and some people may find as dull and boring as you find the current top 10 if they know loads of 50-70 year olds with those names).

The figures show that it's clearly not a case of everyone picking the same names any more. The number of people opting for top 10 names is reducing year upon year, but there will always be a top 10 picked by more people than others no matter how widely spread people's choices become!

I think many on here often forget that those of us who post regularly on here, with a keen interest in names, actually make up a very small percentage of society who are aware of name statistics. Most people just pick something they love without a second thought for how popular it may be (as, to most people, it really doesn't matter). Popular names are, by nature, more likely to be on people's radars as they are the names people are currently more use to hearing on small children. Humans are naturally influenced by each other after all. Therefore the current popular and up and coming rising names tend to become more and more popular for a while, before people eventually tire of them or start to associate them with their own generation. Most people don't wish to pick a name which reminds them of loads of people they went to school with, so by that point the names start dropping down the charts (like what is happening now with Jessica, Chloe, Sophie etc). I predict Olivia, Amelia, Isabella, Ava, Evie, Noah, Oscar, Alfie, Finley, Lucas etc will have a similar fate in the next 10 years or so when Olivias and Amelias etc start having babies of their own in their droves.

Funnily enough, the most popular names among new parents at my school these days tend to be Sophie, Chloe, Jessica, Amy, Hannah, Megan, Lauren, Jack, Josh, Daniel, Tom, James, Ryan, Sam, Ben. There's a reason those names are now all in decline. Society eventually started to tire of them. The same will definitely happen to the current top 10 at some point. By then, the top 10 will probably be Maeve, Margot, Luna, Harper, Aria, Penelope, Ophelia, Lyra, Hallie, Bonnie and Arlo, Luca, Roman, Rory, Reuben, Elijah, Ezra, Hudson, Caleb, Harrison (just random examples of current trends, not an actual prediction!), and by then those names that all seem to be currently all the rage will be the ones people are questioning why are people still picking them?!

Basically, there will always be popular names. Questioning why people pick them when there are so many other names out there is missing the point of name statistics completely. You personally might not understand why people want to choose them, but the actual reasons behind why the majority do are pretty obvious.

Agree with you there. The usage of Olivia is incomparable to the usage of say, Claire in the 70’s.

I can’t move at work for middle aged Claire’s! Also an unbelievable amount of Mark’s.

In my DD's primary class of 33 kids there were 3 girls with the same name and also 3 boys with the same name.

Just choose your favourite name OP!

Haha. My DS went to a tiny school and in his class of 25 there were 3 Olivia's, 3 Oliver's and 3 Jack's. 😮

In many ways I think this is the best kind of name. It’s as if you’re slightly ahead of your time and your name is likely to be perceived as youthful.

So much better with a name associated with an older generation/on its way out.

I was so fixated on popularity, I'd spend ages trawling the ONS sites and would even go on the popularity by specific area! We went for a name that was around 70-80th on the list and there's 3 of them in my son's nursery class! It doesn't bother me now but it's just funny how it all works out! I will definitely be more laid back if we have another one.

Generic and confusing. So odd that the majority pick the same 10 names. There are literally hundreds of “normal” perfectly nice underused names. It’s not between Olivia or Moon Unit.

Off top of my head Miranda Antonia Susannah Tess Hester Mary so refreshing after Eve / Amelia / Isabel which sorry are just so dull now

We named our second born a top 10 name, I was worried about this but it was a name with significance to both me and dh and we both loved the name so we went for it. We have him some slightly more unusual names for his middle names so he could use one if he ever felt bothered about being one of a load of his name.
He is 17 now and has never been in a class or even year group with someone with the same name but funnily enough several other boys had his more unusual middle names.
Just choose the name you like as it will be their name no matter what and they will be that person.

My DC have very top ten names. Yet when I named them 10+ years ago they weren’t! But saying that one of them is the only one in his year.

In our school there are lots of Georges, Samuels and Oscars.

As a 1980s Olivia I'd suggest it's not worth worrying about name popularity at a given time. When my mum named me Olivia she liked it because it wasn't widely used. Obviously that backfired almost immediately 😆 (nb this is US data) https://nametrends.info/names/Olivia

I used to have to spell my name out all the time for people. Quite like that I don't have to any more!

It sure does. But on the other hand there are none of either in my child’s school year.
My point was, this isn’t like the 80’s, 90’s etc where you would almost always get 1 of several in the class. Olivia wouldn’t even be in the top ten with these figures if it was in the 90’s.

My cousin is almost 16 and she’s a Megan. I think it’s such a beautiful name ❤️

My oldest son is the only child in his year with his name (100 kids) and I have never met another child with his name. However, his name is a normal one that doesn’t make people roll their eyes.

My other son has one other boy in his year with the sabe name (60 kids) and I know a few others with the name too. It’s a normal name but not one that is overly popular I think.

It’s hard trying to find a name that isn’t so popular that they’re everywhere, and a name that doesn’t make people inwardly cringe or think, WTF?! 😂