Highlights
Abstract of Press Release
Associate Professor Yuji Ogihara of Aoyama Gakuin University reviews empirical studies examining temporal changes in the frequency of (un)common first names and demonstrates that uncommon names increased over time in many nations: Germany, the U.S., the U.K., France, Japan, China, and Indonesia (Figure 1). He reveals that an increase in uncommon names is observed more generally, not locally in some limited nations.
Previous research has shown that uncommon names are increasing in some nations. However, these findings have been reported separately by nation, making it unclear whether the phenomenon is observed more globally or more locally in some limited nations.
Therefore, he reviews empirical studies that examine temporal changes in the frequency of (un)common names. In addition, he summarizes the information of research on (un)common names and naming behaviors for uniqueness, including study periods, indicators, and sample characteristics.
Accumulated evidence has demonstrated that uncommon names increased over time in Germany, the U.S., the U.K., France, Japan, China, and Indonesia. Moreover, this trend has been found in diverse cultural zones: European, American, and Asian cultures. Therefore, giving uncommon names is a more global trend. This increase in uncommon names reflects broader sociocultural changes toward greater emphasis on individuality and distinction from others, contributing not only to our understanding of naming practices but also to a deeper understanding of society and culture.
These findings were published on 25th November, 2025 in the international journal Humanities and Social Sciences Communications ( https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-025-06156-1 ).
Background
Previous research has shown that uncommon first names are increasing in some nations. However, these findings have been reported separately by nation, making it unclear whether the phenomenon is observed more globally or more locally in some limited nations. Moreover, one of the reasons the findings had not been summarized is that the previous studies were presented separately in various academic disciplines. For example, the articles were published in journals of psychology, sociology, linguistics, demography (population studies), area studies, behavioral science, and interdisciplinary.
Therefore, Associate Professor Ogihara reviews empirical studies that examined temporal changes in the frequency of (un)common names, connecting many academic disciplines that investigated names and naming behaviors separately. In addition, he summarizes the information of research on (un)common names and naming behaviors for uniqueness, including study periods, indicators, and sample characteristics.
Results
Accumulated evidence has demonstrated that uncommon names increased over time in many nations: Germany, the U.S., the U.K., France, Japan, China, and Indonesia (Table 1). All the nations that were examined have shown an increase in uncommon names. Thus, the phenomenon is observed more generally, not locally in some limited nations. Moreover, this trend has been found in diverse cultural zones: European, American, and Asian cultures. Therefore, giving uncommon names is a more global trend.
This increase in uncommon names reflects broader sociocultural changes toward greater emphasis on individuality and distinction from others, contributing not only to our understanding of naming practices but also to a deeper understanding of society and culture.
Table 1. Excerpt from “Summary of empirical studies examining historical changes in common/uncommon names”
Nation
Article
Period (years)
Germany
Gerhards & Hackenbroch (2000)
1894–1994 (101)
The United States
Twenge et al. (2010)
1880–2007 (128)
Twenge et al. (2016)
2004–2015 (12)
The United Kingdom
Bush et al. (2018)
1996–2016 (21)
Bush (2020)
1838–2014 (177)
France
Mignot (2022)
1800–2019 (220)
Japan
Ogihara et al. (2015)
2004–2013 (10)
Ogihara (2021a)
2004–2018 (15)
Ogihara (2022)
Ogihara & Ito (2022)
1979–2018 (40)
China
Cai et al. (2018)
1950–2009 (60)
Bao et al. (2021)
1920–2005 (86)
Indonesia
Kuipers & Askuri (2017)
1911–2010 (100)
This study has two limitations. First, in some studies, the representativeness of the samples was not sufficient. Thus, it is desirable to conduct further investigation to increase the representativeness of the samples. Second, existing literature has investigated historical changes in the rates of uncommon names in many nations. However, future research should examine whether the increase in uncommon names is observed in other nations as well. This is especially true for cultures other than European, American and Asian cultures.
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About Aoyama Gakuin University
Aoyama Gakuin, founded on the legacy of three schools established by American Christian missionaries, marked its 150th anniversary in 2024. For a century and a half, we have been committed to developing servant leaders—individuals who act with purpose, humility, and a deep sense of responsibility to others.
Aoyama Gakuin University is a comprehensive institution with 11 faculties and 27 departments. Rooted in a tradition of honoring diversity and encouraging collaboration across disciplines, we continually advance the quality of our research and education. As a community dedicated to serving God and people and contributing to society, we strive to evolve with the demands of our time and to define what a forward‑looking university should be.
Aoyama Gakuin University: https://www.aoyama.ac.jp/en/
Aoyama Gakuin University (Why AGU?): https://www.aoyama.ac.jp/international/from_overseas/whyagu/?wovn=en
About Associate Professor Yuji Ogihara from Aoyama Gakuin University
Yuji Ogihara, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor at the Department of Psychology, College of Education, Psychology and Human Studies at the Aoyama Gakuin University in Japan. He earned his doctorate from Kyoto University in 2015. His research interests include cultural change, interpersonal relationships, names, individualism, and culture. He has over 50 publications to his name. He is a recipient of numerous awards, including the 2024 Young Scientists’ Award (Commendation for Science and Technology by the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, Japan), the 2022 Award for Distinguished Early and Middle Career Contributions (Japanese Psychological Association), and the 2015 Student Poster Award (Society for Personality and Social Psychology).
Website: https://sites.google.com/site/yujiogiharaweb/english
Mail: yogihara@ephs.aoyama.ac.jp
Funding Information
This research was supported by the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) KAKENHI (Grant Number: JP19K14368).
Humanities and Social Sciences Communications
Literature review
Not applicable
Uncommon names are increasing globally: A review of empirical evidence on naming trends
25-Nov-2025
The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.