The most popular car-inspired baby names

Choosing a name for your newborn baby can be a very tough decision. Trends are always changing, and more and more parents are on the lookout for quirky and creative names for their little one.

If you’re struggling for ideas, sometimes it can help to take inspiration from your passions or hobbies. If you’re an automobile fan, why not look at car-based names? While we wouldn’t recommend naming your baby after BMW or Volkswagen, there are plenty of car brands and models that have inspired unique baby names over the years.

To find out the most popular car-based baby names, we used data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), as well as US government data, to reveal which names have gained popularity across the UK and the US over the last five years, and which may have fallen out of favour.

Popular car-inspired baby names

Top UK Names

Popular boy names

The most popular name from our list for little boys in the UK is Austin, which has been given to 2,868 babies over the last five years. The name is perhaps inspired by the Austin Mini, a classic version of the Mini from the 1960’s.

Lincoln ranks second for boys in the UK, with 2,156 babies having been given the name closely associated with the century-old luxury motor company. A Mini is perhaps a big inspiration for many parents, as Cooper comes in third on the list, with 1,945 little boys potentially named after the UK’s iconic Mini Cooper car.

There are clearly a lot of motor-racing fans out there too, as the late Enzo Ferrari has potentially inspired the name of 1,452 little boys over the last five years. The name Enzo has actually increased in popularity by 51% since 2017.

Although it’s perhaps one of the more common names on the list, Martin rounds off the top five, with 998 babies potentially named after Aston Martin, the iconic British sports car brand. The name Aston also features on the list of popular UK boy names, coming in 10th place, with 374 babies having been given the potentially car-inspired name.

The most popular car-based choice for baby girls in the UK is Aurelia, possibly inspired by the classic Italian car the Lancia Aurelia. Only produced between 1950 and the summer of 1958, the vintage car may have influenced 1,182 baby names in the UK over the last five years.

In second place is Elise, which could be associated with 1994’s Lotus Elise roadster. The car was named after the granddaughter of Roman Artioli, who was chairman of Lotus at the time. 1,046 little girls have been given the name since 2017, though it has seen a significant decline of 42% over the last five years.

Octavia comes in third, with the Skoda Octavia family car potentially inspiring the names of 452 babies, up 56% from 2017. Liana is fifth on the list, with 411 babies possibly named after the popular Suzuki car. Liana is actually an acronym for Life in a New Age, which adds a quirky touch to the name.

Top US Names

Popular boy names

Over in the US, the name Lincoln is even more popular than in the UK, with 36,786 babies having been given the name since 2017. While this could be thanks to the car brand, the name is also commonly associated with former US president Abraham Lincoln.

Maverick comes in second place, with the Ford Maverick potentially influencing 28,238 baby names. Fans of Top Gun might disagree with the source of inspiration however, as Maverick is also the name of the main character from the very-popular 1986 movie.

As in the UK, Cooper is third on the list of popular US baby names, with 22,891 babies sharing the brand name of the popular Mini car model. Austin follows closely behind in fourth, with Mini’s vintage car potentially inspiring 21,900 baby boy names in the US. Rounding off the top five is Bentley, with 15,150 baby boys in the US possibly named after the luxury British car brand.

Topping our list for baby girls in the US is Morgan, with the name being given to 8,266 babies over the last five years. Although a popular name on its own, some car-fans may have chosen it based on the Morgan Motor Company, the British motor car manufacturer.

The rest of the top five US girl names are similar to those in the UK, with Elise (7,468), Octavia (4,248), and Liana (3,385) all popular choices for little girls over the last five years.

The car-inspired names increasing and decreasing in popularity

Despite not reaching the top five, one car-inspired name which has seen a huge increase in popularity over the last five years is Soul. A gender-neutral name possibly associated with the Kia Soul, it’s seen a 400% rise in popularity for baby girls in the US, and a whopping 600% for American baby boys. The name has even reached across the pond, with a 150% surge in popularity among UK baby boys too.

Possibly inspired by the British car company, more and more parents have chosen to name their little ones Lotus over the last few years too. Another name chosen for both boys and girls, it’s seen a 100% increase for baby girls in the UK, and a 150% increase for little boys in the US.

Although we might be seeing an increase of the electric car on the roads, Tesla has actually decreased in popularity for baby names over the last few years. Although 133 baby girls in the US were named after Elon Musk’s famous car in 2017, just 29 were given the moniker in 2021. The increased popularity of the Tesla brand could possibly have influenced the decline in baby name popularity, as parents may not want their child’s name to be associated with a popular car brand.