Sci-fest Study Names Good and Bad Names

Submitted by edg on Tue, 25 Mar '08 10.44am

The results of an Edinburgh Science Festival study into what people think of first names are in. Over 6000 people were asked whether the most popular first names in the UK sounded successful, lucky, and attractive.

Sorry, Ann and George. Your names were deemed to be the "most unattractive." Too bad, Lisa and Brian. Your names are considered the least successful. Stay away from the roulette table, Helen and John. Apparently your names are the least lucky.

You could always change your name. The study has some suggestions: the regal-sounding James or Elizabeth were deemed most successful. Jack and Lucy
topped the luck table, and Sophie and Ryan were considered the most
attractive names.

It's not exactly the hard end of the Edinburgh International Science Festival, which opens today, but the experiment, conducted by psychologist Professor Richard Wiseman of the University of Hertfordshire, may sway some.

Past research suggests that perceptions can become self-fulfilling prophesies, with teachers giving higher marks
to children with attractive names and employers being more likely to
promote those who sound successful.

"Traditional names with Royal associations are viewed as highly successful and intelligent, and so parents hoping for successful offspring might want to avoid more unusual names," said Wiseman.

"Attractive female names tended to be soft-sounding and end with the ‘ee' sound, whereas the sexiest males names are short and much harder sounding."

Interesting sex differences also emerged, with women exhibiting greater levels of agreement than men about the most successful, lucky and attractive names.

"Women share strong opinions about names, whereas men are more even-handed," noted Wiseman. "If our opinions about people are influenced by their first names, then this data suggests that women may be more judgemental than men."

Celebrity Names

Prof Wiseman has employed the results of The Name Experiment to carry out the following analysis of some of the more unusual celebrity names.

Princess Tiàamii (pronounced tee-ah-mee): Daughter of Jordan and Peter Andre. Has both Royal associations and the double ‘ee' sound, but more likely to be associated with good luck than career success.

Peaches: Daughter of Bob Geldof and Paula Yates. A very soft sounding name with positive associations that will conjure up positive and attractive images.

Kal-el: Son of Nicolas Cage. Short, hard-sounding and the original name of superman, making it sexy and attractive.

The 20th Edinburgh International Science Festival runs until 5th April.