When it comes to children’s names, the parents of the Fermanagh and Omagh District are largely keeping up with the Northern Ireland trends, according to figures released recently by Fermanagh and Omagh District Council.

The most popular boy’s name registered by the Council's Registration Service on behalf of the General Registry Office in the past year was James, while Grace was the most popular girl's name.

Both names were also the most popular names given to newborns in Northern Ireland in 2020/21.

The information, supplied by the General Registry Office, demonstrated the return to more traditional names, particularly among boys, with James, Jack and Charlie featuring in the top five names locally and across Northern Ireland.

Indeed, when comparing the top five names for each gender locally with the Northern Ireland figures, four out of the top five names for both genders feature in the top five in Northern Ireland.

Impartial Reporter:

The Council's Registration Service is responsible for the registration of life events in the district, including the registration of births, deaths, marriages and civil partnerships.

The Registration Service team also performs civil marriages and partnerships at Council offices and at approved venues.

Over the past year, the number of births registered in the district was up slightly on the 2019/20 figure, as was the number of deaths registered in the district.

The number of marriages registered in the year 2020/21 saw a significant drop from the previous year, undoubtedly impacted by the Covid-19 health pandemic and restrictions in place from March to May, 2020.

The first outdoor wedding to take place in the district since the introduction of Covid-19 restrictions took place at Grange Park, Omagh on June 1, 2020.

This was the first wedding to ever take place in the award-winning Council public park, with a total of six people in attendance, in line with restrictions at the time.