Vintage baby names are making a major comeback – with 20 set for popularity in 2025. Old-fashioned names previously viewed as “outdated” are now being seen as beautiful and timeless due to cyclical trends and a lack of association with colleagues, friends and family members according to naming experts.
Celebrities like Blake Lively, Lily Allen and Katherine Heigl have all opted for old-fashioned and elegant names for their children like Inez, Betty, Ethel and Adelaide. Now Devon Kapler, founder of Go Au Pair, explains why vintage names are becoming so popular.
She said: “Opting for a classic name that hasn’t been used much in recent years allows parents to be unique without being too daring. These names bring with them a rich history and an undeniable sense of charm. They may seem old-fashioned, but they also feel fresh. Names like Cordelia and Julia have a romantic appeal, while Atticus and Earl exude a bold, almost rebellious quality. With such a wide variety of options, there’s a vintage name out there to suit every little one.”
The resurgence of classic names comes alongside a trend towards “short and effortless” names, with parents favouring brief, one to two syllable names that are three to four letters long. Names like Milo, Mack, Vann and Hugo for boys and Navy, Indy, Drew, and Reya for girls are gaining traction, with ‘a’ and ‘o’ endings among the more popular due to it softening a ‘brisk’-sounding name.
There has also been a flurry of European-style entries surging up the list. French names Ottilie and Elodie, the Greek Ophelia and Irish Maeve, have steeply increased in popularity as names for girls.
In 2023 – the last statistics available from the Office of National Statistics – the UK’s top five girls’ names were Olivia, Amelia, Isla, Ava, and Lily. The top five boys’ names were Noah, Muhammad, George, Oliver and Leo.
The vintage names making a comeback, according to Go Au Pair:
Cordelia
Julia
Sylvia
Theodore
Mabel
Arthur
Clara
Harold
Imogen
Frederick
Gloria
Adelaide
Inez
Evelyn
Estelle
Earl
Atticus
Louis
Edwin
Chester