51 baby names no one loves anymore
51 baby names no one loves anymore
1. Amanda
This name fell from grace after its peak of popularity in the '70s and '80s.
It's not totally gone from parents' pick list, but it's much less popular than it used to be, ranking as number 602 in 2018.
2. Angela
Angela was at its most popular between 1965 and 1979, when it was ranked among the top 10 names for girls.
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In 2018, 55 babies were given the name, ranking it at 720 in the list.
3. Annette
Not a single parent chose the name Annette in 2018, but this isn't the first year it's happened. There weren't any baby Annettes in 2014 or 2002, either.
4. Barry
Although having a bouncing baby Barry sounds like a nice idea, the name itself isn't as nice a thought.
Only nine baby boys were given this name in 2018.
5. Bernard
Last year, Bernard fell outside the top 1,000 boys' names for the first time since 2014.
25 baby boys' were given the name in 2018, but if you're worried it sounds a little old-fashioned, just shorten it to Bernie for a cute nickname.
6. Brian
Brian is still a strong name for babies, but it isn't getting picked by parents as much as it used to.
Can you imagine a baby Brian? Clearly, they're about, as it's managed to stay in the top 500 boys' names.
In 2018, 91 babies were given the name.
7. Carol
This festive name failed to be chosen at all in 2014, but was given to four baby girls last year.
Surprisingly, seven baby boys were named Carol in 2015.
8. Cecil
Cecil has a very old-fashioned vibe, but it hasn't gone completely extinct yet.
Even though since 1996, there were nine separate years where no babies were named Cecil, seven boys were given the name in 2018.
9. Cindy
Cindy is another name that's been up and down the popularity list, but in 2017 it reached its lowest ranking at 2,201.
There were 12 Cindy's born in 2018.
10. Clive
Just three babies were named Clive in 2018, ranking it 4,749th in the baby boys' names list.
11. Colin
Only 23 boys were named Colin in 2018 – it didn't manage to make it into the top 1,000 boys' names, either.
12. Cynthia
Cynthia hasn't been a top pick for parents for the past 20 years. So if you're looking for a rare baby name, this could be it.
Just 14 babies were named Cynthia in 2019.
13. Debbie
Debbie has only just squeezed into the top 2,500 baby names for girls, ranking 2,499th in 2018. Poor Deb!
14. Derick
You rarely hear of a baby Derick these days, but parents actually haven't been a fan of the name for a while.
Only 55 babies were named Derick in the past 23 years!
15. Donna
Donna was relatively popular in the mid '90s, but since then has been on a steady decline.
Six babies were named Donna in 2018.
16. Doris
This name was ranked in the top 10 in the early 1900s, but is nowhere near as popular nowadays.
It may be surprising to know that 11 baby girls' were named Doris in 2018, despite it usually being associated with elderly ladies.
17. Edna
Even though there weren't any baby Ednas in 2016, the name has been picked more and more each year since.
In 2017, there were five babies named Edna, and in 2018, there were 11.
It'll be interesting to see how many there were this year!
18. Elaine
Elaine doesn't even make the top 1,000 baby girls' names these days. Only 14 babies were given the moniker.
19. Gail
People have massively fallen out of love with Gail. In the last 10 years, not even one baby has been given this name.
England and Wales have officially said goodbye to Gail!
20. Gareth
We just can't imagine naming a little boy Gareth ... Since 2015, less than 20 babies have been named Gareth each year.
21. Gary
235 babies were named Gary in 1996, but only 17 babies were given the name in 2018.
How long before we'll be saying goodbye to baby Gary's altogether?
22. Gerald
Despite Gerald having a strong masculine meaning – 'ruling' or 'spear' – this name no longer rules for parents.
Its lowest point was in 2011, but last year only 11 babies were named Gerald.
23. Gordon
Less than 20 babies have been named Gordon every year, since the turn of the century.
Since 2017, it's been less than 10.
24. Howard
This English name was very popular in the 1940s and 1950s, but it's since dwindled. Where Howard was in the top 500 baby boys' names in 1996, it's now just about in the top 1,500.
25. Ian
This name is a lot less popular with parents nowadays than it was in 1996. There were 253 baby Ians born then, in comparison to just 62 in 2018.
26. Janet
500 years ago, Janet was a royal favourite in Scotland. However, the name recently saw its lowest ever pick, with only five babies named Janet last year.
27. Jeremy
Whether you think of Kyle, Clarkson or Corbyn, this name is getting a lot of baggage with it. That might be why it's popularity has more than halved since 1996 – 50 babies were named Jeremy last year.
28. John
John is a staple boys' name that seems to stand the test of time, but it's actually been steadily falling in popularity since the '90s.
It was in the top 50 boys' names in 1996, but doesn't even make it into the top 100 now.
29. Karen
Karen is of Danish origin and was the third most popular name for girls in 1960, but only 21 babies were given the name in 2018.
30. Karl
This Scandinavian name was ranked number 1,013 in popularity in 2018, but was far more popular in 1996, where it ranked 110th.
28 babies were called Karl last year.
31. Leah
389 babies were named Leah in 2018, but that wasn't enough to squeeze it into the top 100 baby girls' names.
It just about made it in 2017, ranking in at number 98, but slipped to 136th in 2018.
32. Lewis
Lewis is another name that's recently left the top 100 boys' names list.
619 babies were given the name last year, but Lewis was pushed down to number 104 in the ranks – meaning it was outside the top 100 for the first time in over 20 years.
33. Linda
A popular name in the 1970s – not so much now! Just 20 babies were named Linda last year.
34. Mandy
Often short for Amanda, Mandy was popular back in the '70s and '80s, but only three babies were given the name last year.
Still that's more than it was in 2016 when not a single parent named their baby girl Mandy.
35. Marcia
This Latin girls' name means 'of Mars', so maybe the association with martians has put parents off choosing it for their babies.
Only seven girls were given the name in 2018.
36. Mavis
Mavis wasn't on new parents' radars at all in the late '90s and early '00s. From 1996-2010, only six babies were given the name. Since 2011, the number of baby Mavis' has been increasing ever so slightly.
Could this name be due a comeback?
37. Megan
The Meghan Markle effect may apply to fashion trends, but it hasn't done anything for baby names.
Megan was the 100th most popular baby girls' name in 2017, but dropped out of the top 100 a year later – for the first time in over 20 years.
The name has been on a steady downfall in the '00s, though, from its peak in 1999, where it was the 3rd most popular name.
38. Morag
This name may be a favourite in its native country, Scotland, but it hasn't been given to a baby in England or Wales since 2002!
Only 23 baby Morgans have been born in the past 23 years.
39. Muriel
This name was in the top 30 in the 1920s, but it's definitely run out of steam now.
In the past seven years, there haven't been any new baby Muriels, and since 1996, only eight girls were given the name.
40. Nathan
Nathan is also getting picked much less than it was in the early '00s.
It ranked 88th in the 2017 list of baby boys' names, but didn't make it in for 2018.
41. Nigel
This once-popular name has now dropped to outside the top 2,000 baby boys' names. There were no new Nigels in 2016 and only eight in 2019.
42. Norman
Norman saw a massive dip in popularity in 2017, where not a single parent picked the name for their baby.
There were 10 baby Normans in 2018, though. Maybe it's about to make a gradual comeback?
43. Paul
This name has drastically fallen in popularity since the '90s. Compared to 1996, where 898 baby boys' were given the name, only 133 were named Paul last year.
44. Roald
We reckon this name is reserved for super fans of the author, Roald Dahl. Three baby boys' were given the name 2005, but apart from then, there haven't been any other baby Roalds in over 20 years.
45. Roy
Roy was in the top 400 boys' names in 1996, but now doesn't even make it into the top 1,000.
Only 24 babies were named Roy last year.
46. Sharon
Sharon has been out of the top 500 baby girls' names for the past two decades, and out of the top 1,000 since 2013.
22 babies were named Sharon last year.
47. Steven
Like John, Steven is another name that's declined in popularity almost every year since the '90s.
65 babies were given the name last year, meaning it missed out on a top 500 boys' name spot.
48. Susan
It means 'flower,' but Susan has been far overtaken by other floral names.
Six babies were named Susan in 2018, in comparison to fellow flower name Lily, which was given to over 2,000 newborn girls.
49. Tanya
The Greek name Tanya has been ranked as 1,711 girls' name in 2018, where 17 babies were given the moniker.
50. Tracy
This archetypal '80s name has been up and down in the charts, but it hit rock bottom last year, when no parents chose this name for their daughter.
51. Tyler
Tyler took position as the 95th most popular boys' names in 2017, but last year, it slipped out of the list for the first time in over two decades.
Since reaching its peak position in 2012, where over 3,000 babies were named Tyler, it's been declining as a boys' baby name.
Looking for a more popular name? Why not browse this collection – Best Baby Names 2021: Over 8,000 of this year's favourite names by Siobhan Thomas. See more details here at Amazon.