‘I gave my son a baby name that’s going extinct, some people say he’ll be bullied’
Watch: 'I gave my baby a name going extinct - he'll be the only one at school with it'
A mum has shared the reasons she decided to give her son a soon-to-be extinct baby name, despite comments from strangers claiming he might be bullied.
Casey Hennessy, 21, and her partner, Zacchaeus Harper, 25, have always been fans of more traditional names.
When they found out they were expecting a baby boy, they floated the names Winston, Axel and Finnegan but there was another moniker that came out on top...Arnold.
The couple welcomed their little boy on December 9, 2023, weighing 8lbs 3oz, and Hennessy said as soon as she looked down at her newborn she knew he was an Arnold.
"I like the idea of him having a traditional name," the new mum, a health care assistant from, Eastbourne, East Sussex explains. "It will sound smart.
"Though we do shorten his name his Arnie to make him sound more youthful."
Hennessy gave birth to her first child Maggie, two, in April 2022.
When she found out she was expected her second child in March 2023, she decided she wanted to give him a traditional moniker.
"We both like our traditional names, but it was so hard to come up with a boy’s names," she says.
"I like the fact that they [traditional names] are actual names, which they can grow into. And you can also give them nicknames.
"I also wanted him to the only Arnold in his class," she adds of her reasons for choosing the moniker.
The name Arnold looks set to go extinct alongside many other vintage names, but that didn't put Hennessy off.
"He could have been a Winston, Murphy or even an Axel, which are the sort of names we liked but none of those names suited him.
"I instantly knew he was an Arnold, it just felt right.”
Since Arnold's arrival, Hennessy says she gets mixed reviews from people and the moniker her and her partner chose.
While the older generation seem to like the name, commenting that it's "lovely" and they "haven't heard it in a while", Hennessy says younger people can be more sceptical.
"Some people have commented that he will get bullied because of his name, which I hope will not be the case."
But despite a mixed response the couple say they are happy they chose a unique moniker for their little boy.
"Overall we love it," Hennessy adds.
Baby names at risk of going extinct
Monikers, which were once common on pre-school registers, including Maddy, Vivienne, Bruno and Buddy, have fallen out of favour with parents, so much so that they are now at risk of becoming endangered.
According to BabyCentre mums and dads are side-stepping once-popular baby names made in favour of some more out-there monikers inspired by celebrities.
The parenting site looked at names that saw the biggest dip in ranking to compile a list of monikers that are at risk of never being used again.
Welsh boys' names Griff and Bowen have fallen out of favour, alongside the trend for surnames as first names with Preston and Jameson slipping down the popular list.
Certain old-fashioned names have been on the rise, but others including Flo, Vivienne and Peggy have all seen a decline.
Meanwhile girls names with alternative spellings have also taken a hit, Zahraa had seen a rise, but took a huge tumble last year and Kiera, Alyssia and Elyse also lost popularity in 2023.
Boys' names at risk of going extinct
Keanu
Ryder
Leroy
Younes
Aydan
Griff
Bowen
Bruno
Jameson
Moses
Nelson
Preston
Tiger
Buddy
Hansel
Luigi
Matthias
Miller
Raffy
Roscoe
Girls' names at risk of going extinct
Flo
Maira
Vivienne
Zahraa
Alyssia
Deema
Kiera
Latifa
Nihara
Peggy
Tianna
Anita
Bailey
Elyse
Indiana
Renee
Saira
Drew
Macey
Maddy
Additional reporting SWNS.
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