The trend for ridiculous baby names is eroding our sense of national identity
This week's tidings that Muhammad heads the list of UK baby boys' names for the second year running doesn't only reveal a profound shift in demographics, it shows how the practice of handing down saints' names amongst white Britons born into some form of Anglican heritage has practically evaporated.
I was at primary school with a bunch of Davids, Mathews and Stephens, but now such lads would be called Noah and Oliver (the next two most popular boys' names in the country) or, judging from my sons' classmates: Fergus, Otis, Ethan and Max.
Meanwhile Olivia, Amelia and Lily head the girls' names table, which belies the fact countless parents strive for studied originality. In so doing, they've become remarkably like lemmings leaping off a cliff while yelling 'I'm so unique'.
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