# Popularity and diversity: The negative relationship in baby names in the United Kingdom

## TL;DR

This study shows that as baby names in the UK have become more diverse, they have also become less popular, revealing a strong negative relationship between the two.

## Contribution

The study reveals a strong negative relationship between name popularity and diversity, enabling prediction of one from the other.

## Key findings

- Diversity and popularity of baby names are highly negatively correlated.
- High diversity in names corresponds to low popularity.
- This relationship allows prediction of one indicator from the other.

## Abstract

Previous research has shown that popular names have become less popular over time. Simultaneously, accumulated evidence has indicated that names have become more diverse. However, the association between these two phenomena was unclear. This association should be revealed for a better understanding of names and naming practices. Therefore, this study investigated the relationship between the popularity and diversity of names.

I analyzed the data provided in a previous study in the U.K., which included complete records of all live births between 1996 and 2016 (N = 12,985,140).

I found that the correlations between diversity and popularity indicators were highly negative, showing that they are conceptually strongly related. This means that when diversity is high, popularity is low.

Based on this study, we can predict one indicator from the other indicator. Because raw data on names are generally difficult to collect, this prediction is useful for understanding names and naming practices.