Experts at a baby online resource company say two once-popular names are “critically endangered” after gaining a bad reputation in the media.
A study by Babycentre UK analysed thousands of baby names across the United Kingdom to determine which were the least popular.
Some once-popular names, they found, were not registered at all. And some were only registered once or twice over the past 12 months.
They found that only one baby was named ‘Karen’ in 2022 – down from four registrations in 2021.
It’s no surprise that Karen has declined in popularity when taking a look at internet culture.
Over the years, the name ‘Karen’ has become synonymous with bossy, privileged and entitled behaviour.
Karen has become a nickname for women that relish ‘speaking to the manager’, and weaponising their victimhood in various circumstances.
They’re typically white, middle-aged, and often have a trademark haircut – short in the back, and long in the front – which was popularised by US TV personality Kate Gosselin.
And the Karen phenomenon only grew in 2020 when the pandemic took hold.
‘Karen from Brighton’, for example, complained that she’d run out of streets to walk in the expensive suburb at the height of the pandemic – even getting a nod from Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews.
Given the blemished reputation of Karens, it’s no surprise that this name has fallen off in recent years.
As for male names, the study says ‘Donald’ is seeing a similar fate.
Donald was registered just once in the UK this year, compared to six times in 2021.
The study largely attributes this to the notoriety of former US president Donald Trump.
For now, the name Donald is strongly linked to his controversial time in office.
His presidency came to a violent end shortly after Trump supporters stormed the US Capitol on January 6, 2021.
Other trends
In terms of fashion, the 1970s and ’80s are currently out, with many designers drawing inspiration from the ’90s and ’00s.
The ’70s and ’80s aren’t getting much love when it comes to baby names, either, with classic baby girl names like Farrah, Stacey, Kelly, Barbie and Britney falling in popularity.
The study speculated that the name Barbie could soon spike in popularity, with the Greta Gerwig-directed Barbie movie starring Margot Robbie hitting cinemas in 2023.
In boy trends, the names Cliff, Nigel and Harold didn’t get any love, with no registrations at all.
The study also said there was a decline in old-fashioned names like Rhett, Brent, Quinton and Giles.
And unsurprisingly, the name ‘Piers’ was not popular at all.
The name had zero registrations in 2022 after it was already declared endangered in 2021.
The study largely attributed this to UK talkshow host Piers Morgan’s antics, particularly his on-air hissy fit over a row about Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.
