Why has Felicity become trendy?

[Livingintheunknown]

I love the name Felicity but have noticed that it's become trendy. It used to be an unusual name but experienced a (seemingly random) sudden rise in popularity. It's quite literally everywhere now. Why is this? Did some celebrity or 'influencer' name their child Felicity? Has there been a character called Felicity? I've had to take it off the list. I just can't do trendy names as they always date terribly. By trendy, I'm referring to names that experience a sudden rise in usage, usually due to a cultural phenomenon, when they were once uncommon.

When I read the Mallory Towers books, I loved the name (Darrell’s little sister) but I’d never heard it pronounced, and I thought it was Felickity. Gorgeous!! I also thought Alicia was Alickia.

i made an error

I knew a Felicity, she was in her 70s in the 1990s. Definitely a pony club type. I don’t think I’ve ever met another.

I did this with the name Deirdre in the St Clares books- I thought it was pronounced in some beautiful way, was most disappointing when I heard it on Corrie 🤣

Felicity is a nice name. It doesn't give me pony club vibes, it reminds me of neighbours. I've only taught one too which is unusual.

Pony club name 😂

But that’s not how it’s pronounced. That’s an English mispronunciation.

How is it pronounced @scallopshelled? In Ireland are you referring to?

It's not! It's now ranked at 152, down from 97 10 years ago. It's not popular, or trendy or daddy at the moment.

I’ve only met one, at school, and I’m now in my 40s. She wasn’t a nice girl so I don’t associate the name with positive things unfortunately!

I know of one Felicity who's 9.

I always find it such a mouthful to pronounce.

I’ve only ever met one Felicity. I think it’s a lovely name, and not trendy or faddy in the slightest.

@HollyGolightly4
Deirdre is Deer-dreh or sometimes Der-dreh.
forvo.com/word/deirdre/

This is a very common pseudonym and is not a very common but somewhat uncommon name for trans women, which would explain why you see it more often now even though you didn't see children named that.

I don't think I've met a single person with the given name Felicity personally who didn't have it as a pseudonym/stage name. So, trendy yes. In the late 2000s it was on a lot of name lists for Victorian/19th century popular girl's names as well. I imagine that may also be relevant to seeing it more recently, but it may also just be the psychological bias of recent exposure (something made you think of it, then your brain starts to pattern match. Where before it would not).

I will note that use as a pseudonym may have been lower around the mid 2010s because everyone would ask if it was a reference to Arrow. Yes, about once per day I would be asked. That stopped, and then suddenly the number of Felicity rose dramatically. Curious

Where have you heard it's trendy?
Why not just call your child a name you like and not worry about trends?

Yes the proper pronunciation of Deidre is lovely- definitely not Deer-dree. See the bit in Four Weddings and a Funeral where Tom meets second cousin Deidre.

It’s not pronounced right in Four Weddings iirc.
It’s Deirdre not Deidre.

Two in my local primary school so must be getting popular ( rural area up North ) so not remotely trendy .
Quite like it .

Name changed for this of course. I have a Felicity in her 20s. She loves her name and it really suits her. I’ve met a couple of younger Felicitys but not many. Friends call her Flick or Fliss both of which are cute IMO.

It’s definitely not a trendy name imo. I’d say timeless really.

Pretty sure it is but I can't find the clip to share.

Oh no, I just found it and you're right- I must have misremembered.

I’m 66 and was almost called Felicity, but my mum decided it was becoming too popular. There was one Felicity in my secondary school and over the years I’ve met maybe half a dozen of similar age to me.

I’m in my 30s and know loads of felicitys of all ages, I didn’t think it was uncommon

I think if you want to be different these days you need to be calling your kid Colin or Edgar or Sylvia or Edna or something. You don't get too many of those.

Because it hasn’t, neither has it become faddy. Well, perhaps in your corner of the world but not nationally. It’s too much of a mouthful and too synonymous with pony clubs and ‘rah rah’ types. Jolly hockey sticks in the pejorative sense.

It’s not faddy or trendy at all? It’s just a moderately popular name.