To wonder why you would pick a name in the top 10?

[FreckledFrog]

So the latest top 100 baby names have been released this week. It has prompted me to wonder why on earth you would pick a name in the top 10-20 names.

There are thousands of beautiful, unique names out there, yet so many people are happy to pick the same names despite knowing their children will go to school with multiple Olivia's, Noah's, Amelia's or George's.

Do these people not desire some originality for their children?

Am I being unreasonable? I have a very very unusual name and have picked less common names for my children and I wonder if this clouds my judgement?

I lived outside of the UK when I named one of my children, and her named happened to be No 1 that year for most popular names. I couldn't care less to be honest whether it was the most popular or least popular. It was something both my husband and I agreed on and suited our daughter. I also didn't want a child to be having to spell their name out for all eternity because we'd decided to call our child something outlandish with wild spelling.

My son's name is one of the top ten but I don't care - it was the only name hubby and I could agree on. At the end off the day isn't your baby's name personal choice, not for anybody else to judge or comment on.

9 letter French name beginning with C- Claudette! Thank you St Clare's. Or was it Malory Towers....

Hi, my children both have lovely traditional names both very popular names but also names that have been in my family for a long time.. sorry for not being as unique and creative as yourself

Erm....surely it's personal choice that CAN be judged ( if you are bothered to ) rather than things that aren't a choice.

Maybe we should hark back to much, much earlier in our history, in order to find more unique baby names, rather than just stupidly making up silly spellings etc. Resurrect some of those fine old British names.....

Let me remind you of that erstwhile perennial favourite: Harbottle!

Or perhaps you prefer Frithuswith?

Personally, I quite like Pullein.

Nine letters, French, begins with C is also Catherine (as in the fashion designer). Also as a St Clares fan, it was Claudine not Claudette!

I'll admit I do silently wonder "but, why would you choose that??" When I hear of another Samuel, Ava, or Lily. I get that you might just love the name but, personally, I'd find it hard to love something that is so common (I mean common in terms of occurrence rather than as the derogatory meaning). Ava seemed such a pretty name when I first heard it, but I've since met so many Ava's that, at this point, it's become the name equivalent of the colour beige in my mind. Not offensive, just a bit blah.

@KERALA1 people aren't offended at her opinion on unique names...
But are more irked at the "why on earth" attitude.
At the end of the day no matter what name you choose somebody is going to love and it and someone else is going to think it's the ugliest name on the planet....ultimately it's the parents choice only!

Chantelle?

Celestine.

At my husbands school everyone was called by their surname, as such we call every single one of the boys (I have known them all since we were 14) by firstname last name, so even if a name isn’t popular people are sometimes in situations whereby they use their surname

Liinoo- I knew there was something wrong as I wrote that. Now I'm wondering where a Claudette has appeared in my real or reading life.

I have a common first name but a rare surname, nether the less when I've google my name there are 5 of us in the uk. But I would much rather be one of many rather than one of a kind when it comes to things like that.

We called our DS one of the top names now 10 years ago because it was a biblical name history dates back in DH that sons called called Hebrew names. I don't care if popular it's personal choice. I myself have a unique Italian name which I like now but hatred as a child as always questioned

How is it lacking in imagination to read a book with thousands of baby names in it?

What lacks imagination is copying the royal family.

This is what you wrote.
I can't imagine not checking the top lists in a book before giving birth!

You lack imagination if you can't imagine not checking name lists on a book.
Imagine someone not reading a book about names. Imagine someone just thinking of a name for themselves. It's not hard.

Not Claudette. 😆

Not Catherine.

Not Chantelle. Not Celestine.

I was in Matalan in Croydon a few years ago, getting a Matalan card, as I was typing in my name, the assistant said, "I've never met another C__ before!" I've met a few.

Cecilia

I was once travelling from Liverpool to Cardiff and at one of the Black Country stations a family boarded with a child called Horacio. For the majority of the journey I suffered the mother shrieking "Ratio stop doing...". I was never inclined towards using the name Horatio and now never will be, after that experience.

Charlotte, charlotta, Chantelle, Charmaine....

I have a friend with 9 letter name starting in C, I've no idea if her name actually is french, but assumed it was as she is French and I've not heard it before.... Charmaine?