Baby names are fascinating because they say so much about us. They echo trends in lifestyle and pop culture, which is why Bridgerton-inspired names and cottagecore-inspired names are so in right now, and why ’90s-style names had a moment a few years ago.
They also have a very aspirational element to them. After all, when parents choose a name for their child, they hope that name will stand them in good stead for life.
Our taste in music is a definite reflection of our personality, so it’s no surprise that baby names inspired by singers and musicians are consistently popular. What’s really interesting, though, is a list of the UK’s favourite musical baby names compiled by Jewellerybox using ONS data from the last 20 years.
Top of the pile is Demi, a name inspired by the brilliant singer-songwriter Demi Lovato, who recently came out as non-binary. Right behind is Lennon, a name inspired by Beatles legend John Lennon.
The rest of the top 20 is a mix of names inspired by Gen Z icons like Miley Cyrus, Rihanna and Billie Eilish, and back-in-the-day music legends such as Prince, David Bowie and Etta James. Dua is currently just outside the top 10, but will surely climb rapidly over the next couple of years. The names Nirvana and Kanye make the list, too.
Check out the top 20 music-inspired baby names below.
1. Demi
2. Lennon
3. Miley
4. Billie
5. Rihanna
6. Adele
7. Prince
8. Shakira
9. Jonas
10. Etta
11. Dua
12. Hendrix
13. Elvis
14. Drake
15. Bowie
16. Dre
17. Nirvana
18. Devlin
19. Kanye
20. Santana
Meanwhile, the official list of the most popular baby names in Scotland was revealed in April. According to Julie Ramsay of the National Records of Scotland (NRS), it showed that “different generations of parents have different preferences for naming their babies”, with millennial parents making pretty different choices to parents from Gen Z.
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