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Baby names

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

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Original poster

Which of our names will date the best/worst?

30 replies

pomposity · 26/02/2012 21:58

Hello all. Please can you give me your opinions on our shortlist, in particular which of them will date the best/ least well. I'm keen to avoid a name that'll be old hat in a few years time but am not really keen on any of the timeless classics.

Jasmine
Molly
Lily

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Pandygirl · 26/02/2012 22:02

Not Molly, I think Lily might work best long term.

EdithWeston · 26/02/2012 22:03

I think Molly would be your best bet, followed by Lily.

mayanna123 · 26/02/2012 22:23

I think cutesy type names, Lily & Molly are most likely to date imo. They have been so trendy recently, along with names like Ellie, Evie, Milly etc that it is inevitable that they will fall out of favour at some point.

Jasmine or Yasmina are much more classic imo.

breatheslowly · 26/02/2012 22:27

I think they will all date pretty badly. Sorry.

Oubliette0292 · 26/02/2012 22:31

Go for Margaret and use Molly as a nickname? There are lots of ways to shorten Margaret, so I think it would be a good long-term bet.

SlinkingOutsideInFrocks · 27/02/2012 02:44

All of them will date, but in this order:

Lily
Molly
Jasmine

I would avoid all three if you, quite rightly, don't want a date-able name.

People saying Lily won't date are deluded - it is a very, very cyclical name.

Yes, it has been around for a while, but only because it comes in and out of fashion, and doesn't stand the test of time(lessness). It is very much 'of the current era' - all the Ellie, Eva, Ella, Milly, Molly, Lily cutesy, twee names have over-loaded the baby/toddler populace and are eyes-glassing-over material now, never mind in another 5 or 10 years...

sparkle12mar08 · 27/02/2012 11:41

They'll all date badly to be honest - none of them are what I'd call classy or classical. Back to the drawing board maybe?

StrandedBear · 27/02/2012 11:54

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

anewmotivatedme · 27/02/2012 11:55

I don't think Molly will date.

The others might.

anewmotivatedme · 27/02/2012 11:58

There is nothing wrong with having nn as full names. I was christened Kate, and love my name, but no doubt mumsnetters would have had my mum call me Katherine. With our 4 syllable surname, this would not have been appreciated.

If you look at old census's, nn's are not something new.

Margaret is an awful name, Molly is lovely.

I personally do not like Lillian, but like Lily.

FilterCoffee · 27/02/2012 12:40

I think Molly will date fastest, then Jasmine, then Lily.

TheCrunchUnderfoot · 27/02/2012 12:50

They will all date I think, though they're all nice names!

If you worry about dated names, how about:

Josephine instead of Jasmine? -Posy, Jojo, Josy nns.

Elizabeth instead of Lily - Libby, Lila, even Lily for short?

Mallory could be Molly for short - other good M names might be Melissa (Mellie, Lissie) or Romilly could make Molly, though it's more often Milly.

boyfallingoutofthesky · 27/02/2012 13:45

I think they will all date, particularly Lily which, if you add the Lilly spelling, would probably be the most popular girl's name currently. I think Jasmine will date least, though I prefer the other two personally.

I think it is really quite difficult to find a name that won't date as names go in cycles hence names from the 1920s are currently in vogue (Iris, Violet, Ada etc). Even if you pick one that is not in vogue currently (eg Sarah) it would (falsely!) date your baby to the 70s/80s.

Trying to think of girls names that won't date I can think of Hannah, Elizabeth, Katherine, Charlotte and possibly Rose if you are going for a floral theme!

sonniebonnie · 27/02/2012 13:59

I think Lily and Molly sound the most 'fashionable' these days, along with all the Evies, Ellies, Tilly, Archie, Alfies etc.... These cutesy names WILL date, in fact I think they already feel 'overused'.

Jasmine hasn't been as popular as the other two so probably won't fall out of favour as quickly.

MamaLazarou · 27/02/2012 14:20

Jasmine is deffo the classiest and most classic-sounding IMO.

YummyMummybee · 27/02/2012 16:34

I agree with all of the above. I think Jasmine has been popular far longer than Lily or Molly & is still alot less common.
I think Molly is everywhere at the moment & has nearly reached saturation point! As I mentioned in another post Lily is completely out of control at the moment!!
So sad about Molly as I love it so much but its just another one of those cutesy overused names at the moment:(

anewmotivatedme · 27/02/2012 17:28

Just a thought, if you are worried about name dating. How about Molly, but have Mary on the birth certificate? Molly was traditionally a nickname for Mary. I went to school wtih a Molly, and I'm 30, so I don't see it as a trendy name.

SlinkingOutsideInFrocks · 27/02/2012 20:24

There are loads and loads of names which won't date - if you just look outside popular, widely known names - it's really not hard. And I'm not talking about yoonee'q, made-up names...

The following names would be pretty much impossible to date someone to a particular era, age or generation, and this is just off the top of my head...

Literary names such as Marianne, Eleanor, Emma, etc
Shakespearian names such as Miranda, Helena, Juliet, Kate, Rosalind, Celia
Slightly left-field names such as Honor, Merryn, Mallory, Hope, Hero, Isadora,
Even quite normal, easily recognisable names such as Megan, Naomi, Tabitha, Zara, Alice, Heidi, Leah, Rebecca, Iona...

I mean, the list of names which sound 'refreshing' (i.e. not dated) and un-pinpointable, age-wise to the owner, is endless. This is a drop in the ocean. Of course, many of these won't be to people's tastes.

sonniebonnie · 27/02/2012 22:04

I agree Slinking and find your suggestions very classy and timeless. The ONS list of ALL baby names used lists hundreds of lovely, proper names that aren't 'fashionable' or 'overused' - have a look at the names beyond the top 100 or even top 250 names.

PercyFilth · 28/02/2012 11:00

I too think all three names will date.

As Slinking and sonniebonnie have indicated, there are plenty of names that tread quietly but firmly through the ages, never becoming ubiquitous yet never sounding outrageous. Good suggestions where to look for these types of names, too.

With the caveat that ANY name can sometimes be seized on and will take off to hitherto unknown heights of popularity. This is often celebrity-inspired or media-driven, but sometimes it's just a mystery how a trend begins.

whippetwoman · 28/02/2012 11:20

I agree with PercyFilthabout her caveat.

When I grew up I was the only person in my huge comprehensive school with my name and for years I was the only person I ever met with my name. Over the years my name became hugely popular and has topped the most popular name list for ever and ever it seems. I went from having an unusual name and loving it, to having the most popular name for girls.

I'm now pregnant with my third and know full well that if I choose an unusual name, there's nothing to stop it becoming so popular it's off the scale. Go for a name you like and don't worry about popularity and it dating. There's not a lot you can do about that and all your three names are very pretty indeed.

PercyFilth · 28/02/2012 11:28

That's interesting, whippet. Was there an obvious reason, such as the name being used in a best-selling book or in a film, or is it a mystery?

whippetwoman · 28/02/2012 12:04

Hi Percy no particular reason as far as I know. I would love to know though! I think it's just something that happens but I'm not sure why. It was seen as an 'aspriational name' according to a newspaper article I read?! Not sure about that though. It's certainly changed the way I think about names though and I just go with what I like now. I imagine in a few years time it will become very unfashionable again as it's so popular at present.

survivingwinter · 28/02/2012 12:22

Same thing happened with my name - no-one knew how to spell it in the 70's and I was always the only one at school but now every supermarket I go into parents are yelling it out and it is in the top 10 most popular! No idea why??

I think Jasmine will date the least our of your choices OP - it is lovely

othersideofchannel · 28/02/2012 21:33

"Go for a name you like and don't worry about popularity and it dating. There's not a lot you can do about that"

What you CAN do is choose a name that isn't ALREADY in the top 50 or 100. At least you've then got a chance the name won't be super popular.

From the names above, I think Molly and Lily are the most 'trendy'.

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