A new survey has shown that technology, politics and history have a considerable influence when it comes to naming children in Germany - negatively impacting the favourability of names in the eye of parents. 

There are some obvious political sensitivities in the country

Somewhat unsurprisingly, Germany’s political history has shaped the country’s preferences for naming children. 

Adolf, or Adolphus has seen a massive decline in popularity since the Second World War, and a recent poll by YouGov has found that a huge 89 percent of respondents in Germany would not call their child Adolf. The name, though once popular in Germany, has since become associated with Adolf Hitler and Nazism, explaining its nosedive in popularity.  

Traditionally American names that were previously popular in East Germany before the fall of Communism, such as Kevin, have also fallen out of fashion, with 80 percent of survey respondents stating that they would not willingly put that name on a birth certificate.

Tech and current trends also have a strong influence when it comes to name-choosing

Amazon’s voice-controlled assistant Alexa seems to have put people off the name, demonstrated through the 79 percent of survey participants who said that they would probably not choose to name their child Alexa. 

Greta also seems to have become an unpopular name for girls, with many attributing the name’s lack of popularity to the rise of the polarising eco-activist Greta Thunberg.

Family background is important when Germans choose names

When asked about what the important decision-making factors are in selecting a name, the survey respondents overwhelmingly stated that familial and ethnic background shape their choices. 

The survey also found that many Germans are satisfied with their given names, with only found 13 percent of survey respondents saying that were unhappy with the name they were given.