31 Unpopular Baby Names That Might be Extinct Soon
In this day and age, vintage is cool when it comes to just about anything. Record players and vinyl are the coolest way to listen to music, fashion styles from decades past are seeing a renaissance, and every popular movie from the last 30 years seems to be getting a reboot.Well, baby names are no different.
Well, baby names are no different. Old fashioned baby names are definitely becoming popular again for millennial parents — but that doesn’t mean that all retro monikers are making a comeback. In fact, some names are dangerously close to being a thing of the past for good.
Baby Centre has compiled this list of baby names that have yet to be registered in 2017, which means these unpopular choices could soon be on their way out.
1. Angela
This name of Greek origin means, “heavenly messenger.” Angela was one of the most popular monikers of the 1970’s and 1980’s, lingering in the Top 10 baby names for girls (and even Top 5 during the late ’70s) for decades. It started falling out of popularity in the late 1990’s into 2000.2. Bertram
Typically a boy’s name, this German name meaning “bright, wise” can have a unisex use. This name hasn’t been registered in 2017 OR 2016 and was the 6,450th most popular name in 2015. Needless to say, this is a dying moniker.
3. Beverley
This lovely name comes from the English, meaning “stream.” Sadly, this name hasn’t broken the Top 1,000 since 1962 and is only getting less and less popular.4. Carol
Once the name of great women like Carol King and Carol Burnett, this traditional name comes the French and means “joyous song.” The last time this name was in the Top 100 baby names was in 1971, but it was extremely popular in the 1940’s.
5. Clarence
Often used as a unisex name, Clarence was most popularly used for boys. The male version of the name comes from the Latin meaning, “bright, clear boy,” and hasn’t been very popular since its heyday at the turn of the 20th century.6. Clive
The moniker of the great Clive Owens was actually never that popular. Neither was the name it originally comes from, Clifford. This classic English choice meaning “from a steep cliff” came in at 2,878th in 2017.
7. Debra
This nickname of the Hebrew name Deborah, meaning “a bee girl,” came in at 5,908th this year. The name, which was very popular in the 1980’s, started losing steam in the following decade.8. Diane
Derived from the Latin name Diana, which means “divine,” this name had a long run of being in the Top 20 baby names from 1946 to 1959. Since that time, however, this name has slowly been falling out of vogue.
9. Dean
Surprisingly, this once-popular name has really taken a fall from grace. This name has Latin origins meaning “presiding official,” and is still pretty common compared to the other names on this list; it came in at 184th this year.
10. Derek
This popular German name meaning “ruler” has really seen a dip in numbers since the 1980’s. Even when it was at its most popular, this name only just broke into the Top 50 names.
11. Duncan
A unisex name from Celtic origins, analytics show that this name was most commonly used for boys – however, this name hasn’t been popular at all since 1990’s, where it just barely broke the Top 500 baby names. Needless to say, this name could very well be one for the history books.12. Elaine
This beautiful French name meaning “Light” started gaining steam around the time of the Great Depression and saw popularity all the way through World War II. Since the 1950’s, however, this lithe and lovely name has been slowly disappearing.
13. Ernest
One of our personal favorite boy names! This name means exactly what it sounds like (“earnest”) and is typically associated with men. Interestingly, this name has seen a very gradual drop off in popularity. The moniker became popular starting in 1880 and didn’t lose its spot in the Top 100 names until the 1990’s. Impressive.14. Geoffrey
Although nowadays associated with one of the worst characters from Game of Thrones, this English name meaning “heavenly boy” saw popularity for decades. Maybe it’s the negative connotations in pop culture that now have this moniker ranked 4,142nd.
15. Horace
This classic Latin name means “an hour in time” and is one of the lowest ranked on the list: in 2017, the name stands at 5,497th. This is a serious drop in popularity since the name was in the Top 1,000 names in 2000.16. Joanne
Yes, this popular name is on the chopping block this year! This Hebrew name means “God is gracious” and currently stands at 1,511th, far from its Top 50 ranking in the mid-1930’s.
17. Leonard
With the recent death of the great Leonard Cohen, we’d imagine this name might see a little bit of an upswing in popularity. However, that has not been the case so far in 2017. The strong name means “like a lion” and currently stands 696th – not too bad, considering the other rankings on this list.18. Maureen
This Celtic name meaning “great girl” starting gaining popularity in the mid-1940’s and started its fall from the limelight in the mid-1980’s.
19. Malcolm
Although we’ve always enjoyed the mischievous, fun sound to this name, modern parents seem to disagree. This Latin name means “a dove” and became most popular in the 1990’s. Nowadays, it sits just below the Top 500 baby names.20. Nigel
This moniker has Latin origins and means “dark,” which we can understand not being particularly attractive for a child. Funny enough, this name has never been terribly common, as it’s never broken into the Top 500 baby names.
21. Neville
The name of one our favorite characters in literature actually comes from Latin and means, “from the new town.” It currently stands as one of the lowest on the list, failing to even make a ranking this year.22. Paula
This fun name of the 1980’s is actually derived from the Latin phrase, “small girl.” Although the name was extremely popular from the 1940’s into the 1990’s, it’s now fallen to 696th on the list.
23. Roy
About as regal as they come, this French name literally means “King.” However, Roy isn’t quite the king of the monikers anymore. The name was in the Top 100 names (often in the Top 50 names) through the 1940’s, 50’s, and 60’s but has now fallen below the Top 500.
24. Sally
Whether it’s spelled Sally or Sallie, this shortening of Sarah is now well beyond the Top 1,000 baby names. This is quite a fall from when the moniker started catching on in the late 1920’s, where it only grew in popularity into the 80’s and 90’s.
25. Sandra
This name is, fascinatingly enough, a shortening of the Greek name Alexander, which means “defender of mankind.” But despite its epic meaning, this name has fallen to 890th this year, losing more than 300 spots in the last decade alone.26. Sharon
Another 80’s classic! This name, which was in the Top 10 names during the 1940’s, is now close to the Top 2,000 baby names. Wow.
27. Sheila
Although this moniker has strong Celtic associations, it’s actually of Latin origin, meaning “blind.” The name now ranks 1,519th, which is quite a fall from the Top 50 spot it held for several decades.28. Tracey
This fun name meaning “warrior” in Latin is, without a doubt, the lowest ranked on our list. Currently at 9,534th, this moniker is far from its golden age of the 1950’s, where it was solidly in the Top 100 baby names for years.
29. Wendy
Despite the loveliness of this classic name, this moniker has seen better days. Meaning “fair girl” and deriving from Germanic languages, this Disney-famous name was extremely popular in the 1970’s and has since seen a pretty sizeable fall.30. Wayne
Unless it has the name “Bruce” in front of it, it’s unlikely you’ll be hearing this once-common name too often. Although it’s now rapidly approaching the Top 1,000 baby names, this moniker has been solidly popular from the turn of the 20th until the 1990’s.
