Meghan Markle and Prince Harry surprised the world Wednesday when they revealed that they had named their baby Archie Harrison Mountbatten-Windsor. Many people expected a name that followed royal tradition, and "Archie" managed to eschew almost everyone's expectations.
Still, while the name "Archie" may be uncommon in other places around the world, including the US, that isn't at all the case in the United Kingdom. In fact, as recently as 2017, Archie was ranked the 18th most popular baby name for boys in the UK, according to the Office of National Statistics in the UK.
The name "Archibald" hit the charts in 1904 at 60th place and in 1914 at 88th place, but it hasn't been popular in the UK since. The name "Archie," however, is a different story.
Beginning in 2000, the name exploded onto the map as the 81st most popular boys' name. It continued to climb in the years following, with huge jumps in 2009 (from 31 to 20) and 2001 (from 60 to 55). It has been in the top 20 ever since 2013, when it hit its highest-ever rank of 16th.
For context, the name "Justin" was ranked the 17th most popular boys' name America in the 1990s according to Social Security. (That's of course during Justin Timberlake's teen heartthrob years.) For the name "Archie" to achieve the same popularity in the UK today is certainly notable.
Despite the roaring success of "Riverdale," "Archie" has been unpopular in the US. It hasn't been on a Top 1,000 list since 1988, which accounts for much of the surprise and confusion surrounding Markle and Prince Harry's naming choice.
But in the UK, while perhaps not a formal royal name, the name "Archie" is certainly a common one.
