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

[MrsHBaby3]

Amelia and Harry
which according to bounty.com have the number 1 spots!
Are we that boring? Do we need to come up with something else or doesnt it matter?
Suggestions, please!

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...

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

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.

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.

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

Yes I guess youre all right, thanks. (We've since decided Harry doesnt work with our surname but still LOVE Amelia) Part of what I like about it are all the NNs so even if she is in a class of 15 Amelia's they can be a bit different
I think Olivia was very no1 for ages but Ive never met anyone in my life or via my kids friends called Olivia.

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 :-)

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.

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

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?

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.

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?

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?