Margot pips Meghan in most popular baby name stakes
Meghan, Duchess of Sussex has been one of the biggest influences on fashion in 2018, but it seems the "Meghan effect" has not extended to Britain's maternity wards.
"Margot", possibly influenced by the popularity of Australian actress Margot Robbie, was more popular than the new royal, as was Matilda, according to a collation of birth announcements in the UK Telegraph.
Meghan, with the same spelling as the US-born duchess, has not appeared in the paper's announcements since 2001.
Kate and Catherine, both names of the Duchess of Cambridge, also failed to make this year's top 30.
Instead two other traditional names, Margot and Matilda, took equal top spot, with Isabella and Ottilie in third place. The only other royal name to appear is Beatrice, who featured despite her sister Eugenie's marriage to Jack Brooksbank at Windsor Castle in October.
While it is tricky to explain the spike in popularity of particular names, commentators have suggested the popularity of Robbie as one explanation. Robbie appears as one of the leads in the movie Mary Queen of Scots (due out here in January), and made headlines in 2018 for her flawless fashion choices.
The Telegraph said it is most likely that Roald Dahl’s heroine, Matilda, in the now award-winning British musical has had an impact on parents selecting the name. Other popular names for girls included Florence, Eliza, Jemma, Olivia and Poppy.
The publication’s top 10 boys' list is more royal in flavour with Henry and Arthur rising to the top spots, possibly off the back of Prince Harry's marriage to Meghan in May, as well as their pregnancy announcement in October. The order of service on the eve of the wedding, listed him under his official title, his Royal Highness Prince Henry.
Following in equal third place were Edward and William, then George, Alexander, Frederick, Jack, Oliver and Thomas.
According to Australian social researchers McCrindle, about one in 10 Australian babies are given one of the 10 most popular names born within a year of a report released last May.
Locally, Charlotte was expected to be the top girls' name of 2018, followed by Olivia, Ava, Amelia, Mia, Isla, Grace, Ella, Chloe and Harper. Topping the boys' list was Oliver, followed by William, Jack, Noah, Thomas, James, Lucas, Henry, Ethan and Mason.
So far neither Margot nor Meghan have topped the Australian lists but that could change when the Bureau of Statistics releases its Popular Baby Name report in April.
Online resource Baby Centre has also released preliminary statistics on baby names with Ava taking the top spot over Charlotte in 2018, while Oliver maintains its position as the number-one boys' name.
With The Telegraph UK