Weirdest Scottish baby names of 2018
Corbyn, Figgy and Lucifer among the new arrivals
Peculiar, Marvellous and Awesome - not just adjectives, but the real names of babies born in Scotland last year.
The National Records of Scotland office has released its list of baby names registered over the course of 2018.
Olivia and Jack remain the most popular names for girls and boys, respectively - but it is the opposite end of the list where the real interest lies.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The names making a single appearance on the record include some truly creative inventions, from Montanna-Disney to Corbyn - presumably in honour of the Labour leader - as well as the straight-to-the-point parents who named their little girl “Baby”.
Here are the ten most unusual names for girls and boys registered in Scotland last year:
Girls
- Adora-Belle
- Baby
- Boudicca
- Chardonnay-Zoe
- Figgy
- Jezebel
- Khaleesi
- Montanna-Disney
- Peculiar
- Royalty
Boys
- Awesome
- Baroque-Valentyne
- Corbyn
- Frankie-Blu
- Jezioranachukwudinma
- Marvellous
- Messiah
- Nero
- Tiberius
- Zeus
Last year saw a generous sprinkling of unusual double barrelled names, including girls called River-Elizabeth, Luna-Wolf and Ocean-Rae, and a boy going by the unlikely combination Stuart-Romeo.
Elsewhere, some parents appeared to have tossed aside baby name books in favour of the annals of ancient Rome, with baby boys christened Flavius, Maximus, Nero, Octavian and Tiberius.
Many newspapers noticed that just six babies were given the name Donald last year, compared to 21 in 2014, the year before the current US president announced his candidacy.
“Could Donald Trump be killing off a name once closely associated with his mother’s homeland?” asks The Scotsman.
The election of a self-professed Scotophile, whose mother was born in the Outer Hebrides, “would have been a significant boost to this country – if only he had been a very different human being”, the newspaper muses.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Climate change is threatening Florida's Key deer
The Explainer Questions remain as to how much effort should be put into saving the animals
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
Daniel Lurie: San Francisco's moderate next mayor
In the Spotlight Lurie beat a fellow Democrat, incumbent Mayor London Breed, for the job
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
TV to watch in November, from 'Dune: Prophecy' and 'A Man on the Inside'
The Week Recommends A new comedy from 'The Good Place' creator, a prequel to 'Dune' and the conclusion of one of America's most popular shows
By Anya Jaremko-Greenwold, The Week US Published
-
Sport on TV guide: Christmas 2022 and New Year listings
Speed Read Enjoy a feast of sporting action with football, darts, rugby union, racing, NFL and NBA
By Mike Starling Published
-
House of the Dragon: what to expect from the Game of Thrones prequel
Speed Read Ten-part series, set 200 years before GoT, will show the incestuous decline of Targaryen
By Chas Newkey-Burden Published
-
One in 20 young Americans identify as trans or non-binary
Speed Read New research suggests that 44% of US adults know someone who is transgender
By The Week Staff Published
-
The Turner Prize 2022: a ‘vintage’ shortlist?
Speed Read All four artists look towards ‘growth, revival and reinvention’ in their work
By The Week Staff Last updated
-
What’s on TV this Christmas? The best holiday television
Speed Read From films and documentaries to musicals for all the family
By The Week Staff Published
-
Coco vision: up close to Chanel opticals
Speed Read Parisian luxury house adds opticals to digital offering
By The Week Staff Published
-
Abba returns: how the Swedish supergroup and their ‘Abba-tars’ are taking a chance on a reunion
Speed Read From next May, digital avatars of the foursome will be performing concerts in east London
By The Week Staff Published
-
‘Turning down her smut setting’: how Nigella Lawson is cleaning up her recipes
Speed Read Last week, the TV cook announced she was axing the word ‘slut’ from her recipe for Slut Red Raspberries in Chardonnay Jelly
By The Week Staff Published