Where’s Nigel gone? Boys names and Girls names trends in the West Midlands revealed

We speak to shoppers on Harborne High Street to find out how they feel about their names
By Nick Dee
Published 20th Oct 2021, 18:16 BST
Updated 22nd Oct 2021, 14:18 BST

This article contains affiliate links. We may earn a small commission on items purchased through this article, but that does not affect our editorial judgement.

The best baby names in the West Midlands revealedThe best baby names in the West Midlands revealed
The best baby names in the West Midlands revealed

One of the most difficult tasks for parents of a new baby is deciding upon a name.

Choose the wrong one and the poor kid is stuck with it for years. Well this week the results of an annual survey by the Office of National Statistics to discover the most popular baby names has been revealed

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Well here in the West Midlands 1001 parents decided to name their new-born boy Muhammed or Mohammed whilst 358 chose Amelia.

Across the whole of the UK the most common boys name was Oliver and for girls, Olivia. They have been the most popular names in England since 2015.

Meghan and Harry’s influence are thought to have had some influence on Archie making the top ten nationally. 4225 boys were given that name.

TV is also thought to have inspired some parents with the names Otis and Maeve from the Netflix series Bad education gaining in popularity. They were amongst the largest climbers in the list alongside Milo which was 80th.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

One trend is for younger mothers to use shortened versions of names compared to mothers aged over 35.

Sellina likes her name - but also likes the name FeyaSellina likes her name - but also likes the name Feya
Sellina likes her name - but also likes the name Feya

Where’s Nigel gone?

One name that’s definitely fell out of favour is Nigel, maybe Brexit has had an effect as the Office of National Statistics recorded no babies with that name in the last year.

However as they only record names once there have been three or more births, due to data protection there could possibly be a couple of Nigel’s crawling around.

For girls Carol became technically extinct last year Cheryl close, only six babies were given that name.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

One interesting aspect is how names fall out of favour, Paul and Sarah topped the lists in 1974 today they rank at 384th and 236th respectively.

Loading....

MOST POPULAR BABY NAMES IN THE WEST MIDLANDS

SOURCE: ONS

GIRLS

Amelia - 358

Olivia - 321

Ava - 273

Isla - 268

Willow - 229

Freya - 208

Mia - 201

Poppy - 193

Ivy - 186

Evie - 182

Cathleen is very happy with her name, which she usually shortens to CathCathleen is very happy with her name, which she usually shortens to Cath
Cathleen is very happy with her name, which she usually shortens to Cath

BOYS

Muhammad - 666

Oliver - 403

Noah - 399

George - 373

Oscar - 342

Mohammed - 335

Arthur - 324

Archie - 323

Leo - 323

Harry - 321

Anthony gets called Ant and Tony - but when he was younger he always wanted to be called Bruce or CliffAnthony gets called Ant and Tony - but when he was younger he always wanted to be called Bruce or Cliff
Anthony gets called Ant and Tony - but when he was younger he always wanted to be called Bruce or Cliff

A message from the editor:

Thank you for reading. BirminghamWorld is Birmingham’s latest news website, championing everything that is great about our city - reporting on news, lifestyle and sport. We want to start a community among our readers, so please follow us on Facebook,Twitter and Instagram, and keep the conversation going.

Related topics:West Midlands

Comment Guidelines

National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.