Top UK babies' names from the 1990s
| Rank | Girls' names | Boys' names |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rebecca (5) | Thomas (11) |
| 2 | Lauren (33) | James (2) |
| 3 | Jessica (40) | Jack (74) |
| 4 | Charlotte (22) | Daniel (4) |
| 5 | Hannah (20) | Matthew (6) |
| 6 | Sophie (38) | Ryan (28) |
| 7 | Amy (10) | Joshua(78) |
| 8 | Emily (36) | Luke (29) |
| 9 | Laura (2) | Samuel (43) |
| 10 | Emma (4) | Jordan (93) |
There was a big change for both boys' and girls' names in the 1990s. Historically the boys' names were stable and girls' names changed frequently. In the 1990s seven out of the top ten names for boys' and girls' were not in the top ten for the 1980s.
Rebecca was the top girls' name for 1994. In 1984 it was number five. New to the top ten were Lauren, Jessica, Charlotte, Hannah, Sophie and Emily.
For the boys' names Thomas was number one. Thomas was eleven in 1984. The other new entrants were: Jack, Ryan, Joshua, Luke, Samuel and Jordan.
First names of children announced in The Times
As a comparison, these are the top first names given to children published in The Times in 1992.
These names are likely to be favoured by more well-off parents.
| Rank | Girls' names | Boys' names |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sophie (5) | Thomas (2) |
| 2 | Charlotte (3) | James (1) |
| 3 | Emily (4) | Alexander (5) |
| 4 | Olivia(-) | William (4) |
| 5 | Lucy (2) | Oliver (9) |
| 6 | Alexandra (9) | George (-) |
| 7 | Harriet (-) | Charles (7) |
| 8 | Hannah (-) | Edward (3) |
| 9 | Alice (-) | Henry (-) |
| 10 | Georgina (-) | Nicholas (-) |
Source: 'Thomas takes over at the top' by Richard Sachs, published in The Times 1 January 1993 page 1. Figures in brackets are where the name appears on the 1984 top ten.
There is some similarity between the two lists. Of the girls' names, Charlotte, Sophie, Hannah and Emily are on both lists. But Rebecca, the most popular name on the general list, is not on The Times' list. The Times' list for the 1980s was predictive for the general list in 1994. Charlotte, Emily, Hannah and Sophie were all popular 'posh' names in the 1980s. They became popular names in the 1990s.
For the boys' names Thomas and James head both lists, but otherwise the lists are different.
Read more:
- Top UK babies' names in the 1950s
- Top USA babies' names in the 1950s
- Top UK babies' names in the 1960s
- Top UK babies' names in the 1970s
- Top UK babies' names in the 1980s
Comments