Does anyone else agree that “unique” names are becoming so common?

[Mamatolittleboy]

We called our boy a common name so this isn’t me having a bash. Just wondering if anyone else is finding this too?

I go to a lot of baby groups where woman tell me how much they wanted a unique name so called their baby Oakley, River or Forest. Names I’ve heard so much this year. All beautiful names, lovely names.

Went round a friends house the other day to meet her new baby. Gorgeous boy, they wanted an uncommon/rare name for him - Arlo.

I went for bog standard short names (Ben & Max) for the simple fact that I’d rather not force attention or spark unwanted conversation (I am VERY introverted). Seems these names are now quite uncommon for their age group as I don’t know of ANY other ones 😂

The best (worst) name I've heard round here is Kanobe (as in Obe One) 🙈🙈

Coffin was the 14th infant recorded, so likely to be the runt of the litter. I thought the same about Webb a couple of generations further back, but it wasn't so. Family trees become do much more interesting when you can link them in with newspaper articles etc as well. I found one in 1913 featuring my great grandfather when he lived in Toronto for a couple of years on a picnic with the Toronto Cornish society. A few years later he was at the Somme.

I teach a girl called Gypsy. I also know a boy named Sheriff.There was a kid at my daughter's pre-school called Rogan (as in Josh?!)

Gypsy is quite a lot to live up. You need to be dark haired and exciting. That’s the problem with risky names it’s impossible to tell how they will turn out. I have one child that could rock any name then another who is studious and low key and would be mortified.

The best I heard was a toddler called Velour. I sort of see what they were doing but it’s not even a particularly nice material.

I'd much rather be Velvet than Velour!

Or maybe Georgette or Poplin.

I thought it was the parrot in Aladdin?

We’ve got a Zuzu in our school x

@Hibiscrubbed That's Iago.

There's a Disney film called Good Dinosaur around 2015/2016 and then sun character was Arlo. Think it fit gradually more popular since then - I noticed cos I was pregnant when I watched the film I absolutely loved the name. Thought of it myself but had a DD.

It's become more and more popular since so totally agree

It happens all the time. I have a 16 year old called Logan which was a normal but uncommon name then but since became really common.

@Mamatolittleboy Clover by itself is fine (no different to Iris, Rose, Violet etc) but Clover Leaf is a bit much 😂

What is a middle class school?

Many years ago the was an Angel in my DD's reception class. She was from a traveller community.

Loads of Oakley’s and Arlo’s now especially. Honestly I don’t think it’s a bad thing when “unique” names become not so unique, if a name becomes common it’s much less likely to affect things like employability (not that a unique name should affect how employable you are, but it’s the world we live in). Probably will become dated quite quickly though. I imagine there will be a lot of grandad Oakley’s but very few baby Oakley’s in 60 years time.

I’m shooting in the dark here, but I’m going to put myself on the line and guess that it’s a school where a lot of the students come from middle class families?

Wasn’t it Jamie Oliver that made River more common than what it used to be?

Yes i know. But ‘middle class’ is elitist and old fashioned

Then why not just say you think that instead of this irritating faux confusion?

Elmer? (As in Elmer Fudd, Bugs Bunny's nemesis. Or vice versa.)

My paternal grandmother, whom I never met, had the lovely and I think most unusual name of Pretoria. She was born during or just after one of the Boer wars, around the turn of the 19th to the 20th century.
Sadly, she liked to be known as Geraldine.

My son is called Seán and he's the only one in his primary school of 250 kids! (We're in Ireland). Lots of the more obscure Irish names are back in fashion.

Geraldine. A very solid name. The only Geraldines I have known alway insisted on using their full name