A baby name expert has predicted a number of names he believes will soar in popularity in 2024.
For many new parents choosing a name for their child is one of the biggest and trickiest decisions they will make. Some people take inspiration from older family members, while others are influenced by popular culture.
As the new year gets underway, Lars B Andersen of mynametags.com spoke to the ECHO about the names he thinks we will be hearing a lot more.
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Lars said he believes major films will have a huge influence on baby names this year. He said: "Barbie, which became the highest-grossing Warner Brothers movie of all time, is set to inspire some of the biggest baby name trends this year, including the comeback of Ken.
"While just three babies were named Ken in 2022, experts are predicting a sharp rise in popularity following Ryan Gosling’s portrayal of the character".
Other names forecast to soar in popularity include Margot, which climbed 23 places last year alone. It is expected to reach the top 10 in 2024 thanks to Barbie actress Margot Robbie.
The second most popular film of the year, Oppenheimer, is also pipped to provide name inspiration in 2024. The name Cillian, after the leading Irish actor Cillian Murphy, has been growing in popularity since the star’s most well-known TV show, Peaky Blinders, first debuted in 2012.
Google searches around the name peaked again during the press tour for Oppenheimer last summer and have remained high ever since.
And since the launch of Netflix’s Sex Education TV series in 2019, the name Maeve has increased in popularity, ranking in the top 5 consistently since January 2020. After the highly anticipated final series of the show, the name is likely to remain a firm favourite in 2024.
The popularity of the name Otis, after the show’s main character, has tripled since the show first aired and is set to climb even further up the charts this year.
Spain removed nearly all of its covid restrictions back in 2022, although for a few months after still required people to wear a mask on public transport and in health centres including pharmacies. Early in 2023 authorities did hint that they could look to bring back some form of restrictions when a new variant emerged at the time, although ultimately these were not put into place.
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