UK's naughtiest baby names revealed

The UK's naughtiest baby names have been revealed [Photo: Getty]
The UK's naughtiest baby names have been revealed [Photo: Getty]

There’s a lot to consider when choosing a name for a mini human.

Too common and you run the risk of them being one of seven Olivias or Olivers in the pre-school playground, too ‘unique’ and there’s a chance your bubba will be ridiculed.

And now there’s another consideration to throw into the mix as a new research has revealed people make assumptions about the behaviour of little ones, based on their name alone.

The study, by My Nametags and CensusWide of 1,500 teachers, parents and children in the UK, has revealed the names they most associate with being naughty, as well as those they consider to belong to well-behaved boys and girls.

The participants were asked to look at the top 20 baby names, and rank them from what they perceived as best or worst behaved.

Mia and Jack were revealed as the UK’s naughtiest names, whilst children named Isla and Arthur are considered to be the best-behaved.

Jack received a particularly bad rap with teachers, children and parents all agreeing that boys with the name are the most likely to misbehave.

The name Harry came in at second place for naughtiness, with Connor, Daniel, Riley and Tyler topping the list of less common boys’ names associated with bad behaviour.

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For girls, Mia is the name teachers and parents associate with mischief, although children themselves expect Emilys to be the naughtiest.

There seems to be a bit of a correlation between perceived naughtiness and assumed intelligence with 96% of teachers, children and parents not associating the name Mia with being clever.

Meanwhile, Jack, who came up top as worst behaved, also came lowest on the list when it came to intelligence, suggesting that people felt that the naughtiest children also weren’t clever.

Mia topped the naughty names list [Photo: Getty]
Mia topped the naughty names list [Photo: Getty]

When it comes to assumed saintly children, Isla has been revealed as the top name in the study while Arthur takes top good boy spot.

For girls, Grace is considered to be the shyest in class, with teachers, parents and children agreeing the name tends to belong to the most introverted kids.

In contrast, the names Charlie and Olivia are assumed to be the most outwardly confident.

The survey also found children named George are considered by both adults and kids to be top of the class in terms of intelligence, and they also associate it with kindness.

Commenting on the findings Managing director at My Nametags, Lars B. Andersen, said: “We know that there are strong stereotypes attached to names and that someone’s first name can really paint a picture of what they are like.

"It was interesting to discover that these stereotypes are formed from a young age, with children and adults quick to make judgements about children based on their first name alone.

"These beliefs can make the difficult task of naming a child even more challenging, but we hope that our research will help give expectant parents an insight into society’s opinions of the most popular boys and girls names in the UK right now.”

Explaining why people might make these stereotypical associations Chartered Clinical Psychologist and Scientist, Linda Blair said: “Rather than making judgments about others scientifically - taking a dispassionate look at everyone called Noah or Isabella, for example - we create our stereotypes using just the people we know, as well as those we think we know via social and other media.

“Once we've formed a stereotype, it becomes fixed in our minds because of a phenomenon known as ‘confirmatory bias’.

“This is when we look for and remember people who match up to the stereotype we've formed, while at the same time ignoring information that doesn't fit.

“This is why we become so convinced our stereotypes are correct. For popular names, these stereotypes are likely to be at the forefront of our minds because most of us will already know or have read about someone called Jack, Harry or Emily—and we're quite likely to meet more of them.”

READ MORE: Your baby names fall into one of 13 'tribes', research reveals

Top 5 naughtiest baby boy names

Jack

Harry

Charlie

Oliver

George

Top 5 naughtiest baby girl names

Mia

Ella

Isabella

Amelia

Sophia

Top 5 best-behaved baby boy names

Arthur

Noah

Oscar

Muhammad

Leo

Top 5 best-behaved baby girl names

Isla

Ava

Grace

Olivia

Emily

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