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[Opinions] Most popular names SCOTLAND 2021 official list :)
The list of most popular baby names in Scotland for 2021 has been released today:https://scotland.shinyapps.io/nrs-baby-names/What are you noticing? Anything unusual?Mine:- Olivia is the new #1 for girls, Isla (previous #1) went down to #3. Jack is the #1 for boys and has been the number one since. I am personally super bored by both Jack and Olivia so this gets a big *yawn* from me.- Connell went up a lot (from 5 births to 27 births), probably due to "Normal People". I am quite mad about this as it is a misspelling of the very old Irish name Conall. I wish people would use Conall instead. Connell looks trendy and the character was actually not even great. Marianne (the name of the female main) didn't rise, it stayed where it was (1 birth).- Lyra went up by 10 births (from 21 to 31), probably due to "His Dark Materials". I personally think the show isn't that great (the books are among my favorites and it doesn't do them justice) but I love this name and I am really glad it only went up by 10 births because I expected it to go up much more quickly.- Wondering if Lily and Archie falling out of the top 10 has something to do with the royal family? I don't know whether they are popular in Scotland or not but they have an Archie and a Lilibet "Lily". Lilibet didn't catch on (0 births) it was last used in 2016 with 1 birth. Meghan going down from 4 births in 2020 to 0 births in 2021. Philip went up from 8 to 12 births in 2021. Harry went up a little bit but it's a common name in general and not so associated with a single person as Lilibet or Meghan (this spelling).- Renesmee still going somewhat strong. I thought it would drop like a rock after the last Twilight film but still being used and up from 1 birth to 4 births in 2021.The top 10 is:1 Olivia +12 Emily +13 Isla -24 Freya =5 Ella +26 Amelia +37 Ava -28 Sophie -29 Grace -110 Millie +4Lily fell out.
1 Jack =2 Noah =3 Leo +14 Oliver +15 Harris +16 Finlay +37 Lewis +88 James -59 Rory -210 Alexander -2Archie fell out.I like Finlay which went up, however Finn, Finley and the similar Fionn all went down. I am surprised that Lewis is rising, I thought it had its best time behind it. James' fall is also quite remarkable as it is such as classic.I personally dislike many nickname names however there are many which I much prefer over Millie therefore I am a bit surprised here. I also expected Amelia and Ella to already have their best times behind them. Guess I was wrong.Oh also kind of surprised that Isla fell so quickly. It seems way more interesting than Olivia.What do you think? Let's analyze it :) Anything you noticed?Please rate my list: https://www.behindthename.com/pnl/6232
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More thoughts to come but I was scanning the bottom of the girls’ list and want to know which Star Trek: Discovery geeks named their daughter “Michael-Tilly” lmao
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From my opinion on the names alone, (since I'm from the U.S and pretty much follow the list here and can't really add anything else) I find myself enjoying mostly the girl's side of the list, with my favorites being Olivia, Emily (Sister's name. very popular throughout the 90's-early 2000's here) Isla (A name I very much predict entering the U.S top 10's within the next couple of years) Freya (This one as well), Amelia and Ava. Millie is eh...ok. I think 'Lily' is better though. From the boys side, I like the Jack, Noah, Leo, and Alexander. I don't much care for Harris (Viewed dated here in the States. A quintessential old man's name, for a given name.) Findlay (I just prefer 'Finn.' No Finlay/Finley/Finley, Finnigan etc) Lewis (Don't hate it, just prefer the look of 'Louis' more. Lewis to me is more of a surname, like with Stewart and Stuart, for example. Oliver is fine but do find it overrated. It's very popular over here and very likely to become #1 for boy's pretty soon. I don't like Archie at all. I'm glad to see it drop, only because I hope the u.s decides to follows suit and ditches the name far before it reaches max popularity.

This message was edited 4/7/2022, 8:02 PM

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Jeez. We’re trading Isla for Olivia now? :( Olivia is truly winning I see. Yay! More power to Millie and Freya though. I agree Isla is more interesting than Olivia. Isla has a slightly more exotic and interesting sound, as Olivia is a name you hear quite often. Isla has a very cool meaning compared to... olive. The only thing I really find interesting about Olivia is the Twelfth Night character. No comment on the boys list.
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I'm surprised that Emily is still so incredibly popular in both Scotland and Ireland, as it's falling in Australia, Canada, and the U.S. (not quickly enough for me, though - I know way too many Emilys). Olivia is a name I used to love, but its uber-popularity has killed the charm for me (however, I've never warmed up to Oliver). I really dislike Isla, though; but its popularity in Scotland (where Islay is) is perhaps the most understandable.Of this list, these are the names I do like:Olivia
Freya
Ella
Ava
&
Noah
Harris
Finlay
JamesOf those names, however, I would only consider using Freya, Ella, and maybe Finlay (though I prefer Finn).Harris was a very pleasant surprise! It's a name I truly enjoy, but a very negative association prevents me from using it. If it weren't for that one... douchebag... which is really too mild a word...
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I’m surprised Millie is still so popular, it feels very early-2000s to me. I have noticed before that names seem to date less quickly in Scotland, though.
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Yes, same here. I find Maisie much nicer even though I also associate it more with the 2010s in this case.They seem to like lots of names that are already dated in other English speaking countries.But then again some names never really became popular there.Isabella is so far down compared to England/Wales, same with Eleanor and Isabelle.But then again I know lots of people from Scotland and many my age (born in the 90s) have old man names such as Stuart and Douglas. Not that there is anything wrong with that!
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I know Isobel is considered to be an old-lady name in Scotland, so maybe that’s what puts people off Isabelle and Isabella.
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Isabelle is also similar to Elizabeth in meaning and origin, so maybe people in scotland like the queen less.
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Possibly!However, Philip went up a little bit.Meghan fell. Lilibet didn't enter. Lily and Archie fell. Harry plus one.
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Maybe it's because prince Philip died recently.
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MoreMore information: https://www.nrscotland.gov.uk/files//statistics/babies-names/21/babies-first-names-21-report.pdfFastest rising:Lyla +56
Blake +46
Rowan +41
Lara +38Honestly, Blake for a girl is so ugly to me :(Carson +42
Struan +37
Myles +35
Elijah +34Also rising:Harlow
Penelope
Brooke - huh? why again?
Sadie
Flora
Georgie
Callie
Phoebe
Skye
HeidiCallan
Hudson
Lachlan
Albie
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Ugh, Blake on a girl. Rowan is okay. Skye is so beautiful.

This message was edited 4/7/2022, 1:27 PM

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Rowan is one of few names I consider truly unisex (along with Arrow, Jamie, Morgan, Robin, and Valentine), though I prefer it for masculine use. Still, not a bad name for a girl to have. But I already don't like Blake for a boy, and can't stand it for a girl (we're in agreement). Lara is a pleasant surprise, though! As is Myles, and I prefer this spelling because it doesn't look like a unit of measurement.I'm not complaining about Brooke, as I actually quite like it, along with Penelope, Sadie, and Callan. (I also like Callie, but as a nickname for something like Callista, Calpurnia, or Calypso.) Phoebe and Heidi aren't too bad either. I will say, though, that I seem to be the only person on BtN who can't get on the Flora bandwagon.
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No, I also dislike Flora ;) and Florence.
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I don't know about Brooke in Scotland, but Brooks is newly trendy in the US. It looks like Brooke went down in Scotland around when Brooklyn did in the US. Struan is weird, and omg I wish Hudson would go away.It was interesting Lewis, Jack, Emily, Eilidh are so much more popular with moms who are 35+.

This message was edited 4/7/2022, 9:42 AM

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Eilidh is so pretty, but really wouldn't work outside of Scotland (or anywhere with Gaelic knowledge). I'm imagining a little Eilidh in the U.S. having a devil of a time getting people at school to spell her name right... :-(
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Struan is a city on the Isle of Skye in Scotland. Just googled it :)
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Lewis and Harris are the only ones a little surprising to me in the Top 10. I wonder why Lewis is going up so fast. And I didn't realize Harris was that popular to begin with.Lyra has a popular sound. It makes sense it'd keep rising if people are tired of Isla and Lily.

This message was edited 4/7/2022, 10:15 AM

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Lewis and Harris are both islands in Scotland so it might well be a national pride thing.
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Oh, that makes sense. It looks like Iona and Skye are more popular in Scotland, too.
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Yes, but I am actually surprised it didn't rise more quickly (but glad!). Plus 10 births in not so bad.Yes, Lewis was #1 previously in Scotland and then fell. But I guess it is coming back.
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I would have thought Lyra would rise more quickly too, but looking at the extra info, it seems like it's also competing with Lyla and Lara.
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Yes, true!I like the sounds of LY-la but Lyla looks awkward to me.Where I am from Leila would get LY-la and I really like that but then again it would be a struggle in any other county.Lara reminds me more of Laura and therefore I find it tired, it was popular where I live in the 80s/90s.
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The ones that surprised me most:Harris
Brodie
InnesOrla
Niamh
Remi
Mirren
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I think Orla is rising a lot again because of "Derry Girls" (it is really funny).Mirren was top 100 in Scotland before if I remember correctly.
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