Trends are a fickle thing.
One minute something is in. The next minute it is most definitively not.
And nothing is safe from the winds of change when it comes to style. We are letting trends influence everything from what we wear, how we decorate and even what we opt to name our babies.
Earlier this week, the UK's Office for National Statistics (ONS)
released their latest data on the most – and least – popular baby names across England and Wales in 2020.
And while names like Isla, Olivia and Archie are topping the charts over what new parents opt to name their babies, it turns out that collectively, we have fallen out of love with some more traditional names.
In fact, some very common names are in danger of extinction. According to ONS, three births are required to get on the list and neither ‘Nigel’ or ‘Carol’ made it last year. Meaning no more than two – if any – babies in the whole of the UK and Wales were called Nigel or Carol in all of 2020.
According to baby name experts, the downturn in usage is understood to be caused by younger mothers opting for more modern and shortened names, while mums aged over 35 and older tend to go for more traditional names.
Other names going out of fashion:
1. Nigel
2. Carol
3. Gordon
4. Maureen
5. Neville
6. Sally
7. Ron
8. Janice
9. Piers
10. Sue
