When you combine the different spellings from the ONS 2009 England and Wales data a few interesting changes occur.
For years newspapers have reported that, when all the spellings are added together, Mohammed is the most popular boys name in Britain. But would it surprise you to know that Lily is the most popular girls name?
There are, in fact, nine different ways that British parents have chosen to spell Lily including Lilly, Lillie, Lili, Lilli, Lilie, Lilley, Lillee and Lilee and the number of different Lilys born in 2009 outstrips Olivia of first first place by a considerable 1711 births.
So why has nobody mentioned that before?
Well the simple answer is that no one seems to have bothered to check the girls ranking. Mohammed is newsworthy because it is a Muslim name and that starts interesting questions about British multi-culturalism. There is no obviously 'ethnic' name for girls in the top 100 -- although the combined spellings show Fatima, Aisha and Maryam move into it -- and so the huge popularity of Lily has been left ignored.
What makes Lily such a winner?
Firstly, it has the popular ingredients "short, 2 syllables, 'ee' ending" found in many top 100 names like Ruby, Chloe, Amy, Evie, Sophie, Milly, Ellie, Lucy, Phoebe, Molly, Katie, Maisie, Lexi, Gracie, Rosie, Lacey, Libby, Tilly. Lily also doubles as a nature word name - another popular trend, as can be seen by Ruby, Daisy, Holly, Poppy, Summer, Scarlett, Jasmine, Rose, Amber.
It's quite possible that many parents particularly like the fact that Lily has a multitude of spelling possibilities. That, in fact, far from being seen as potential spelling headache, it give parents a sense of ownership and the ability to tailor the name to their own specification.
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ONS Official Ranks 1. Olivia |
Combined Spellings 1. Lily |
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ONS Official Ranks 1. Oliver |
Combined Spellings 1. Mohammed |
Overall, there is a lot less movement in the boys list than the girls due to fewer alternate spellings being used.
Where things get particularly interesting is the names that make the biggest jumps and falls.
In the new lists Darcey, Aisha, Casey, Annabelle, Maryam, Macey, Aaliyah, Tegan, Abbie, Madeleine, Victoria, Miley, Gabriella, Fatima, Alyssa, Kayden, Zak, Mckenzie, Corey, Cody, Dominic, Caleb, Jay, Sean, Nicholas and Ollie all move into the top 100.
You can read my complete new top 100 and breakdown of the combined spellings in Combined Spellings 2009 Girls and Combined Spellings 2009 Boys
