It's finally happened...70s and 80s names, are they back...?

[Freetodowhatiwant]

The people I was at school with in the 80s are making a come back! I have just heard of a couple (East London based and both quite arty/trendy) who are friends of friends and they have called their baby girl... Lisa.

There were several Lisas in my school so it was really popular (Lisa Marie Presley probably had something to do with that).

Now I think about it I guess it is quite a nice name; short, not too cutesy with its A ending rather than an IE or Y... What names have you heard recently that have surprised you?

My school had more girls called Nicola, Sarah, Emma, Debbie, Karen, Natalie and Kathryn (born mid 70s). I’ve not come across any... yet.
Boys were Robert, Paul, James, Steven, Darren/Darrel.

I am a Lisa
Born 66

Class mates at school in 1970 - 76 (some names anyway)

Julie
Anita
Martha
Maria
Susan
Katy

Paul
John
David
Charles
Joseph

I don’t get why these 70s/ 80s names would come back yet. Isn’t is supposed to be 100 year rule? - or people naming after grandparents? If so, we’re quite far away from the 70s and 80s coming back.

I love Sara/Sarah, Michelle and Jennifer. Lisa just makes me think of Lisa Simpson.

It's interesting why certain names become so popular.
I think the television dramatisation of Jane Austen's 'Emma' revived that nineteenth century one. Mylene Class has been responsible, I think, for Ava being such a favourite.
Interesting 'Diana' never found appeal, even though Princess D was much loved

I think things could possibly be on a quicker cycle these days @zigaziga. Only for the cool kids/the brave trailblazers happy to have a baby Colin in a class of Oliver’s 😂

What about Barbara? Victoria Coren-Mitchell and David Mitchell have a little girl called this, apparently. I'm not far off 60 and that was already rather an old-fashioned name when I was young, so maybe it's time for it to return.

Classmates of mine included Amanda, Sally, Clare/Claire, Janet, Charlotte, Rebecca, Sharon, Tracy, Karen, Sarah, Judith, Julie, Julia, Rosalind, Rosemary, Victoria, Nicola, Jane, Jayne, Suzanne, Gillian, Jill, Ruth, Fiona, Catherine, Kathryn, Kate, Anita, Barbara, Caroline, Carolyn, Tanya, Lindsay, Margaret, Elizabeth, Alison. A lot of those are quite rare now.

Boys' names were less varied, I think.

Love this thread!

There seemed to be a split between my primary and secondary schools (80's child!) no idea why!!!??

The most popular ones in my primary (ie there were more than one of in my class!) were Lisa, Sharon, Tracey, Kelly, Gary, Russell, Craig and Mark

But in my secondary it was all Laura, Sarah, Lindsay, Victoria, Christopher, David, Oliver and Jonathan.

My name has been mentioned and actually I hope it DOESNT make a comeback - I love it but don't really want lots of "new people" ie babies to have it 😂😂

I think Ken would be a great name for a toddler boy!

It's a bit of a gamble, because you can pick a marmite name, hoping you'll be ahead of the game and it will sound cool, and there just doesn't develop a trend for it to fit.

Anyone brave enough for Barry?

I think Wendy will come back. It's in Peter Pan and it's got something about it in addition to being old-fashioned. What comes in from the grandma baby names will be a sound which isn't just lots of 'a's. . Definitely Susan. Peggy, Gail, Wanda. ( But I've just googled popular 50s names).

I think, in fashion terms, we've done beautiful unpronounceable Irish names.

Peggy is great!

I hate the name Lisa, but I’m fairly sure that’s due to association rather than the actually name. Every Lisa in my school was a right cow

@MinnieMousse

I taught a 10 year old Lisa a few years ago. I think it's a nice name that you will see occasionally but I don't think 70s/80s names are due a comeback yet. I think some 50s/60s names will have a resurgence first - Deborah, Jacqueline, Angela etc. My DD7 insists that one of her future DC will be called Pamela after reading the Secret Seven .

I love your DD's thinking.

When my baby sister was born in the 1990s my parents hated all my very Enid Blyton name suggestions - Janet, Rita, Dinah, Irene, Betty

I like Lisa! It’s just a simple, pretty name. Bazillions of them at school with me in the 90s though. I’m a Jennifer and we were thick on the ground too. I wonder if that will come back?

Love name threads.

Solid 60s names due a comeback are: Susan, Carol, Lesley, Linda, Lyn, Joanne, Christine, Helen. Phillip, Craig, Christopher, Martin, Peter.

Would also love to see a Beryl 😂.

Bit bored of Elsie, Ava and Ruby now.

What do we class as 70s/80s names? Names of people who were born then, or who were of school age?
I was born in 88 and was at school in the 90s and 00s, everyone was called Emma, Claire, Rachel, Sarah, Kirsty, Kelly, Vicky, Natalie etc, these were considered modern names. Also knew a Sandra, Janet, Jacqueline and Susanna my age. I much prefer these names to the weird, made up ones that people call their kids these days.

I know a Barry, Darren, Steve and Sharon, all in Hackney with 20 something hipster owners (3 dogs and a cat).

When I was 20 something, I gave my pets granny/grandad names (Hilda, Eric, Alfie and Bertie), the names my friends went on to give their kids (ok, maybe not Hilda but names from the same era). I have a theory that trendy "ironic" pet names become the next fashionable baby names.

@zigaziga

I don’t get why these 70s/ 80s names would come back yet. Isn’t is supposed to be 100 year rule? - or people naming after grandparents? If so, we’re quite far away from the 70s and 80s coming back.

Not really. I was born in 1969 and the Lorraines, Michelles, Traceys, Paulas, Marks and Garys that I was at school with in the 70s and 80s are becoming grandparents now.

I think the recent trend for really Coronation Street names ( Ena, Enid, Doris, Vera) might prompt some classic and probably well-heeled types to go the other way - the other way to trendy, and assiduously avoid any choices that could be inferred as being a bit cute on the part of the parents, a bit too clever in the art of spotting and hogging a future trend.
I'm expecting wealthy people to solidly and unwaveringly go for Isabella, Henrietta, Petronella, Dorothea, Georgiana, Marina ( royal names) especially if they have been in their own family. A good bit of visiting National Gallery, and googling ' The Honourable...' may be done, but many will just stick to last generation's choices. (" Names and fashion? You're joking.")

Whereas nineteenth century servants' names, Daisy, Elsie, Ivy, Rosie, have a certain pretty , floral similarity, I can't really see that there with 50s and 60s names. The vogue for naming kids after film stars had begun then, but film stars had random names - they might be a Jean, but they might be a Constance or something flash, their parents liked, like Marilyn. Harder to ride on a trend with the 60s, but a few will become very popular, probably( Deborah, Susan, Jacqueline, Julie-Anne, Jennifer, Vivienne) just cos they're nice.

In our school 80s we had lots of:

Girls: Clare, lucy, stacey, Vicky, gemma, danielle, Angela.
Boys were Danny, Luke, Gavin, Anthony, Lee.

I know a baby Natasha and a Shelley, too!

Considering someone born between 1970-1980 would now be 40-50, that’s not out of grandparent range. My grandparents were 55 and 57 when they became grandparents and they considered that late. My own parents would have been grandparents at 49 and 50. I could easily be a grandparent by 40 although I hope I’m not.

I know a 6month old Kelly and I think the name is very pretty.

Interested to see James mentioned a few times as a 70s name - we're considering it for the baby boy we're expecting and I thought it was one of those names that was sort of never really fashionable but also never really out?

I agree. James isn't a 70s name!