When naming children, most people don’t consider using something synonymous with a Sicilian crime syndicate, but that’s just what one family chose in 2022 when they named their baby boy Cosanostra.
Other unusual names found on the list this year, which were given to babies for the first time in Scotland were Rubix, Stoker, Pacesetter and Ravine.
The annual list of baby names registered in Scotland was released by the National Records of Scotland this morning, Thursday March 30.
Here’s the full list of names given to babies born last year in the country.
How have the most popular names changed over time?
We’ve looked at baby names given in Scotland all the way back to 1974 through to the latest data in 2022 to see how the most popular names have changed with time.
Noah has jumped from eighth place on the most popular names list to first in the past year, knocking Jack off the top spot.
Jack had previously been the most popular boy’s name in Scotland for 14 years.
There’s been no change in the most popular name for girls, as Oliva is the top pick for Scottish parents again. It has been the top spot in six of the previous seven years.
Pop culture trends influencing parents
The iconic Pokemon character Eevee seems to have inspired a new generation of Scottish parents with three parents choosing the name in 2022.
One of the names not quite racing to the top of the charts but seeing a spike in babies given the moniker was Lando.
Although a few babies were given the name in the 2000s, its has gained in popularity since 2020 – which could be attributed to British Formula 1 driver Lando Norris, who began driving for McLaren in 2019.
The number of babies given the name peaked this year, although there were only five of them.
Popularity might also be linked to beloved Star Wars character Lando Calrissian.
Another name that has blossomed in recent years is Maeve.
This could be due to the continuing popularity of award-winning TV show Sex Education, where Maeve is one of the main characters. In 2022, 90 babies were given the name.
Although less popular, one of the other main characters of the show, Otis, also peaked in popularity in 2022, with 26 babies given the moniker.
One of the most popular TV shows which released at the end of 2022 was Netflix’s Wednesday – following Wednesday Addams from The Addams Family.
One family might have loved the show so much they decided to name their daughter after the gothic icon, as one baby was given the name last year.
Another name that might be experiencing a resurgence is the name Bruno. Bruno was one of the main characters in the Disney film Encanto, with a song featuring the line “we don’t talk about Bruno” making its way to the social media app Tiktok.
Names on the way out
The girl names Amanda, Ashleigh and Kirstin weren’t used in Scotland for the first time in 2022.
Scotland also said goodbye to Bryan, Greg and Keith in 2022.
Names on the rise
We looked at names in Scotland that have broken the 100 baby barrier for the first time in 2022 as a pre-emptive look at the potential top names of the future.
What do the NRS say?
NRS statistician Daniel Burns said: “NRS is happy to welcome all the new babies of 2022.
“A relative flood of Noahs in the last four years has saw the name leap from 8th to 1st.
“There are now so many more names in use, as parents aim for something more unusual, that it takes far fewer babies to share a name for it to be high up in the charts.
“Back in the 70s when David was the most popular name there were upwards of 1,700 babies a year with the top boys name. Since then fertility has declined, meaning there are fewer births, but with more names in use Noah can claim the top spot with 373 baby boys given the name in 2022.”
Read more from the baby names series
King David and the death of Karen: Scotland’s baby name trends for past 50 years
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