According to the findings of a survey on naming practices and traditions, the three major socio-cultural factors affecting one’s choice of a baby name in modern Scotland are family traditions, ethnic / cultural identity and parents’ personal preferences. The survey results appear to be indicative of two competing socio-cultural trends: the reverence to the cultural traditions vs. the urge for authentic self-expression, duly reflected in the Scottish onomasticon and naming practices.
The aim of this paper is to regard the Scottish onomasticon synchronically from a view point of those involved in child-naming practices. The data for analysis and interpretation were obtained from National Records of Scotland, a department of the Scottish Government responsible for civil registration, family history and the national archives and historical records. The lists of baby names that are most popular in Scotland, published by National Records of Scotland annually, allow us to analyse personal preferences that many Scots nowadays believe to be as relevant in naming practices as their naming traditions.
The analysis of the data for 2017 has confirmed our research hypotheses of the ongoing changes in the naming practices and the diversification of the Scottish onomasticon. In practical terms, more and more parents are likely to give their child a name which is different or even unique. This does not imply the abandonment of naming traditions, though; since middle names can be chosen from the family naming pool to carry on the tradition.
Babies’ First Names 2017. National Records of Scotland. 19 December 2017. URL: www.nrscotland.gov.uk/statistics-and-data/statistics/statistics-by-theme/vital-events/names/babies-first-names/babies-first-names-2017 (accessed: 10 January 2018).