Our traditional baby names are becoming extinct
Percy, Norman, Irene & Edna: RIP
The traditional British names that have died out within a generation revealed...
- Study reveals British baby names which have fallen folly to fashion in the last 100 years
- Richard joins the endangered baby name list
- Thomas and William cited as the Britain's most popular names of the last century
- Celebrities increasingly influential when choosing unusual names
Percy, Norman, Edna and Gertrude are just a few of the classic British names that could soon be consigned to the graveyard of history. That's the verdict of a compelling new study which suggests that many popular baby names of years gone by are quite literally dying out with the passing of an older generation.
'gurgle's Historical Names Report' was specially commissioned by gurgle.com - the UK's first mother and baby social networking site - to research the trends in naming behaviour over the last hundred years. The study, conducted by leading statistician Dr Geoff Ellis, looked at the most popular baby names in 1907 that have failed to make the most popular 100 names lists in any of the last five years. The team then plotted each individual name's relative decline in popularity over the last century to provide a fascinating insight into both the names that are dying out and those that have endured over the years.
The study found that Norman and Gertrude are the top male and female baby names that have fallen victim to the passing of time. Gertrude failed to register at all in recent years (a 100% decline since 1907) whilst Norman has recorded a decline in popularity of a staggering 99.85% over the last century putting it top of the boys endangered names list. The traditional British baby names that have witnessed the largest falls in popularity are listed as follows:
| Norman | Walter | Percy | Harold | Ernest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 99.85% | 99.43% | 99.37% | 99.27% | 97.81% |
| Herbert | Clifford | Frank | Arnold | Leonard |
| 97.78% | 95.92% | 93.64% | 93.60% | 92.84% |
| Gertrude | Edna | Ethel | Irene | Ada |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 100% | 99.83% | 99.70% | 98.17% | 98.12% |
| Norah | Olive | Agnes | Elsie | Mabel |
| 97.78% | 96.98% | 96.82% | 95.70% | 95.52% |
The results reveal a clear generational shift - suggesting that names like Norman, which can be traced back to the Norman conquest of 1066, and Gertrude, the name of a Seventh Century Saint, could soon be lost forever. Names that just missed out on top ten placings include Albert, Sidney and Fred on the boys side and Margaret, Annie and Florence for the girls. The full top 20 lists can be found at:
http://www.gurgle.com/tools/baby_names/Origin/default.aspx
Perhaps one of the most surprising results was the fact that Richard which was the UK's most popular name 200 years ago, could soon be heading the same way as Norman and Percy. The report notes that the name is 19th on the boys' endangered list, having witnessed a steady decline over the last century (66% fall) and shows no sign of regaining popularity.
The research suggests that parents are increasingly following fashion when it comes to naming their children. Currently 13% of all children born are given one of the top five boys or girls names whilst a hundred years ago this figure was as low as 8%.
The fashion for unique and experimental baby names was also cited as a factor in the decline of many traditional names. Traditionally children were often named after their grandparents or godparents who would have been carefully chosen for their higher socio-economic status. However, today an increasing number of parents are following the lead of celebrities by giving their children ever more unique names. Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin named their daughter Apple, U2's The Edge and Aislinn O'Sullivan: Blue Angel and Frank Lampard and Elen Rives: Luna Coco Patricia.
It is not all bad news for traditional baby names however - the study notes that some classic names continue to enjoy popularity, albeit in a modern form, with the popular girl's name Olivia replacing Olive; Lily becoming a modern-day Lilian, whilst Nathanial has now been shortened to Nathan and Alfred has become Alfie.
As for the names which have bucked fashion trends, Thomas takes pole position as the UK's favourite name of the last century. Thomas remains a top 5 boys name now and was also amongst the top 5 British names 100 and 200 years ago. The only name that can compete with Thomas for long-lasting popularity is William, which was the second most popular boys name 200 years ago, the most popular 100 years ago and has only fallen to the 9th most popular boys name in the years since 2000. For the girls, Elizabeth has proven the most hardy, ranking among the top 10 both 100 and 200 years ago and still proving popular today.
It would seem that the Royal family may also have an influence. The names Elizabeth, Philip and Charles have remained consistently popular over the last 100 years while the male Royal grandchildren - William and Harry - both have names that have featured in the top ten for the past three years. Biblical names are also still in fashion and whilst the likes of Abraham and Jeremiah may be on the wane, Joshua, Joseph and James still feature in the most popular lists today.
Sarah Stone, gurgle.com's Site Editor said: "Not so long ago it seems we all knew a great Uncle Harold or Aunty Irene, but sadly it seems these names could soon be lost forever. It is clear that modern parents are increasingly being influenced by fashions and celebrity however we also need to remember that there are now more choices available. By way of example, our online Baby Namer tool currently has more than 20,000 names to choose from, that's a lot of homework for aspiring parents!'