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100-year-old baby names that could be about to make a comeback

The traditional monikers have been at risk of dying out, until now

Sarah Young
Monday 26 March 2018 09:11 BST
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If you’re expecting a new arrival any time soon, you’ll know the pressures of choosing the perfect name for your baby all too well.

There are just so many to choose from, and even when you do manage to narrow it down, chances are it’s a moniker that’s going to be big on classroom registers for years to come.

So, just how can parents-to-be find a name for their newborn that’s unique? The key here it seems to look for inspiration from yester-year.

A useful guide for those on a quest for unusual names, parenting website Nameberry has revealed a list of names that were popular 100 years ago in 1918 which are rife with revival potential.

At the time, the names made it into the top 500 but, thanks to a rise in non-traditional monikers inspired by gods or herbaceous plants, nowadays they’re struggling to make an appearance at all.

While the most common names during 1918 were John, Mary, James, Dorothy, Robert and Margaret, the list unearths a selection of some of the lesser-known monikers that could be perfect for parents to bring back.

For girls, names include Agatha, Bessie, Effie, Ida, Maude, Etta, Theda, Polly and Opal. As well as more alternative suggestions likes Alpha, Dixie, Ione, Mamie and Odessa.

Meanwhile, boys’ names such as Abe, Ned, Benedict, Claude, Dudley, Ferdinand, Lowell and Waldo made the list.

For those looking for a more classic moniker though Archie, Barney, Ollie, Stuart and Pete could also be a wise choice.

The list of forgotten gems follows recent news that names made popular in the 50s and 60s are at risk of becoming extinct.

Consisting of 36 once-popular names it revealed Sharon, Leonard, Carol, Tracey, Dennis and Roy as just some of the monikers that aren’t getting the same love they used to.

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