Why 'Keira' and 'Mohammed' are hot British baby names

Nowadays, place names, surnames, television characters, minority cultures - even fruit and seasons are providing inspiration. Unorthodox spellings are also increasingly popular.

"People do seem to look to celebrity and also to America as well," says a spokeswoman for the National Statistics office.

But Bounty says that is only half the picture. Celebrity names motivated just 11 percent of parents, according to a recent study, compared with 14 percent who wanted a traditional name and 26 percent who looked for a name from their own family tree.

And while only 4 percent said they wanted a religious name, the top-10 boys' list reads like a who's who of the Old Testament.

"Although popular myth would have it that we live in secular age, the names with solid moral and spiritual value are still coming through," says Hopkinson.

She says that most parents understand that a baby's name is a brand, and by giving it the name of a role model, parents are hoping to bestow that child with the positive attributes of that name. She said that 56 percent of parents felt their children grew up to be like their name.

Which may be a problem if you are called Apple Paltrow Martin or Zowie Bowie. Unlike other European countries, particularly Scandinavian, Britain places few restrictions on the names parents can give children. As long as it fits in the box on the registration document and is not obscene (in which case registrars may object) any name will stand, no matter how eccentric.

Once the outlandish was the exclusive preserve of superstars. But now, more and more parents want "special" names for their children.

The Bounty survey found that 25 percent sought out a given name which to their knowledge nobody else had. Others express disappointment when they find they have plumped for a name that has suddenly become popular.

"We thought we were being really original," says Alice Brotherton, who named her firstborn Ellie when she was born last June. "We didn't look at the top-10 list at all. Then a friend said she was the first of three baby Ellies whom she knew of, and now it turns out it's the No. 2. We were gutted."

Ironically, the long-forgotten Johns and Davids may be about to benefit from this trend. After all, if the current vogue for creative names continues, it won't be long before these commonplace names become rare treasures.

"I'm quite happy to be part of a more exclusive club," says John Stammers, a resident of Devon, southwest England. "I think people's need to embrace diversity and individuality has superseded John's manly charms. Instead of recycling names from an established list of male stalwarts, parents are starting to be as creative with boys' names as they have been for a good while with girls'. This is a good thing."

Maund, too, has high hopes for his fellow Davids. "In a way, I'm actually rather pleased," he says. "When I was growing up, Davids were ten-a-penny. At least that won't be the case any more."

And he has a message for his comrades: "In the meantime, to all of you Davids out there who value our name: Let's keep our noses clean in 2005 and watch our name reclaim its rightful spot in the top 50 once more."

Page: 1 | 2