Naming your child after an ex, a sports team or a celebrity tot are among the UK’s biggest baby name turn-offs

Naming your child after an ex, a sports team or a celebrity tot are among the UK’s biggest baby name turn-offs, a study has found.

Despite claims that celebrities influence the nation’s baby name choices, two in five couples refuse to pick the same name as any famous child.

And 20 per cent also can’t stand babies being named after adult celebrities.

A third of mums and dads even go as far as ruling out any names rising up the baby name popularity charts, but 98 per cent are happy to consider a moniker which is sliding in popularity.

It also emerged almost three quarters of couples would veto a baby name if it was the same as one of their partner’s ex-lovers.

One in five of those polled by parenting site ChannelMum.com have also red-carded any reference to sports teams and two thirds won’t use monikers which are already popular in their local area.

Surprisingly, royal names are less popular than politicians with 24 per cent axing any names used by the Royal Family, compared to 23 per cent who wouldn’t choose a baby name shared by a member of Parliament.

But the top reason to rule out a name choice would be disliking someone with the same name.

ChannelMum.com baby name expert SJ Strum said: “Even if you love how a name looks and sounds, you can’t separate it from the people it reminds you of.

“Names carry a lot of weight and have a very strong impact on how other people perceive your child.

“Very few parents wish to gaze at their bundle of joy but be reminded of their partner’s ex, a tacky celeb or a person from school they hated.”

The study of 1,200 parents found one in six women chose their child’s name years before they became pregnant – with one in eight picking a name before they even met their partner.

Although the most popular time to choose a name is at six months pregnant, when a quarter of couples name their tot, 17 per cent choose a name once they’ve had the 20-week scan.

A further 10 per cent are named in the delivery room straight after birth.

Controversially, six per cent of mums have ‘stolen’ a baby name which a friend or family member planned to use, while 15 per cent chose the name another loved one already has for their child.

And in a sign of the times, more than half made sure the name could not be viewed as offensive in any way.

More than one in twenty even ‘crowdsourced’ their child’s name by asking for strangers’ opinions online while one in 100 have used a baby name expert to choose their child’s name.

SJ Strum added: “Using a baby name expert is common in Eastern cultures where people pay to have help choosing the child’s name.

“Now with instant opinions available on the internet, crowdsourcing name choices is increasingly common with one in five couples planning to do it in the future.”

BIGGEST BABY NAME TURN-OFFS

1. Disliking someone with the same name
2. Partner’s ex’s name
3. If name is common in local area
4. Celebrity baby name
5. Name rising in baby name charts
6. Royals
7. Politicians
8. Adult celebrity name
9. Sports team
10. Name falling in baby name charts