Exploring British baby names registered between 1996 to 2022, private number plate supplier Regtransfers has discovered that one of the most popular TV shows might be to blame for the death of popularity in certain character names.
In particular, their research revealed that the popularity of the name Megan (or Meg, for short) entered a steady decline shortly after the airing of the very first episode of Family Guy.
We were introduced to the Griffin family when the first episode was shown on Sky One on 21 September 1999. Since then, the eldest child of Peter and Lois, Meg Griffin, has been subjected to a range of abusive behaviours, including the iconic – if entirely scathing and dismissive – catch phrase, “Shut up, Meg”.
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Looking into ONS data tracking baby names given to newborns between 1996 and 2022, there is a clear decline in popularity of naming newborn girls Megan – a trend that begins from 1999 onwards. Despite the slightly different spelling, not even Meghan Markle’s rise to fame through the TV show “Suits” – nor her 2018 marriage to Prince Harry – could save the name from certain death, which has tanked from 6444 Megans born in 1999 to just 126 in 2022.
Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane has explained Meg’s consistent abuse as a result of the writing staff having trouble relating to Meg, as a teenage girl. In later seasons, the abuse of the character has diminished, due to backlash against it and an increase of women on the writing staff. Even so, it seems the damage has already been done.
Megan isn’t the only name to seemingly suffer as a result of Family Guy’s success. When it comes to naming boys, Peter, Christopher and Stewart have each declined in popularity since the show’s debut at the turn of the millennium. Arguably, however, the popularity of these names was already diminishing beforehand, but it’s possible that the show’s inescapable success – and the meme-inspiring content it has produced – has had a sway on millennials decision-making when it comes to naming their offspring.
Curiously, while it’s been far less popular overall, the name Lois – shared by Peter’s wife – rose in popularity for a brief time after the show’s debut, creeping up to a total 507 baby Lois’s born in 2008, before dipping to a low of 155 in 2022.
The one baby name that’s seemingly been unaffected by the show’s success is that of the family dog. Despite being the least popular name overall, Brian seems to have been consistent, at least, in its lack of popularity among British parents.
“It might seem strange for a provider of personalised number plates to conduct research around baby names”, comments Regtransfers CEO Mark Trimbee, “but names play an important role in our identities, and many people take pride in owning a number plate that matches their name. We regularly keep an eye on trends in baby names, as an increase or decrease in popularity can have an impact on the value of some plate combinations.”
“This is just one example of a cultural phenomenon that seems to have had an impact on the popularity of names, and it’s interesting to see how certain names can rise or fall in popularity as a result of entertainment media – for example, the name Neo didn’t seem to exist until the release of The Matrix in 1999; now, between 50 to 100 baby boys named Neo are now born every year.”
Even Joe Swanson, one of Peter’s friends in the show, seems to have had a negative impact on our willingness to give our baby boys the same name. Elsewhere in the data, there have only been 3 Clevelands born in the UK over the past 25 years and, perhaps unsurprisingly, zero Quagmire’s.
Methodology
Data gathered from ONS.
About Regtransfers
Regtransfers, the UK’s leading private number plate supplier, has over four decades of industry expertise. Established in 1982 by Tony Brown, they are officially registered with the DVLA and offer an extensive selection of over 50 million personalised registration plates.