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    1. Life

    The 25 most popular gender neutral baby names in the UK right now

    If you're looking for something a bit more ambiguous for your newborn.

    Catriona Harvey-Jenner's avatar
    By Catriona Harvey-Jenner
    Published 2 November 2021 In Features

    When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

    Newborn baby
    Gender neutral names: The most popular names for both genders in 2021
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    If you're looking for something a bit more ambiguous for your newborn.

    Gender stereotyping is something parents in particular are becoming more and more aware of steering clear of. Whether it's ditching the typical pink/blue onesies, or swapping out a train set for a doll, there's certainly more people keen to avoid placing children in boxes that may dictate likes, dislikes and behaviours that may not be in line with who they want to be.

    It's perhaps for that reason that unisex baby names are on the rise; Google searches for "gender neutral names" have risen by 22% in the last year alone, reflecting that mums- and dads-to-be are keen to stray from monikers that obviously denote their child's sex.

    Plus, there's a totally practical reason to opt for something a bit more gender-ambiguous; if you and your partner take the decision not to find out whether you're having a boy or a girl, you could just pick one name and be done with it!

    Cute newborn baby feet

    With that in mind, we thought we'd dig through the latest baby name data in the UK - gathered by the Office for National Statistics in regards to all the babies born in England and Wales in 2020 - to pull out the gender neutral names that appear to be most popular right now.

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    Prepare for some gender-fluid baby naming inspiration...

    • Frankie (1,010 boys, 363 girls)
    • River (339 girls, 334 boys)
    • Remy/Remi (393 boys, 330 girls)
    • Harley (594 boys, 239 girls)
    • Eden (514 girls, 220 boys)
    • Riley (842 boys, 202 girls)
    • Quinn (188 girls, 149 boys)
    • Rowan (774 boys, 98 girls)
    • Avery (124 girls, 93 boys)
    • Blake (583 boys, 87 girls)
    • Bobby/Bobbie (820 boys, 65 girls)
    • Harlow (273 girls, 52 boys)
    • Charlie (2,810 boys, 50 girls)
    • Aubrey (196 girls, 49 boys)
    • Parker (409 boys, 45 girls)
    • Casey (143 boys, 44 girls)
    • Addison (118 girls, 33 boys)
    • Harper (1,415 girls, 31 boys)
    • Ellis (642 boys, 29 girls)
    • Ezra (1,105 boys, 28 girls)
    • Bowie (54 boys, 23 girls)
    • Cassidy (59 girls, 21 boys)
    • Dakota (77 girls, 20 boys)
    • Alex (560 boys, 19 girls)
    • Drew (34 boys, 17 girls)

    Any on that list take your fancy? If not, why not peruse some of the rarest baby names around in the UK at the moment? You can thank us later...

    Marie Claire Newsletter

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    Catriona Harvey-Jenner
    Catriona Harvey-Jenner
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    Cat is a Senior Editor at Marie Claire, covering news and features across the brand's key purpose pillars, including women's issues, politics, career, mental health, female empowerment and equality, as well as books.

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