An abundance of Katherines: The game theory of baby naming
A satirical academic paper on the “game theory” of baby naming, authored entirely by people named variants of Katherine, prompts a broader look at how and why certain names cluster in time. Commenters highlight the paper’s tongue‑in‑cheek assumptions and SIGBOVIK/April Fools context while connecting it to real research on nominative determinism, implicit egotism, and shifting name popularity. The conversation expands into practical naming strategies, cultural patterns (including immigrant and transgender name choices), and data showing that modern parents increasingly seek names that feel distinctive without being strange.
Meta-joke and paper context
- Commenters note the author list is itself a joke: all first names are variants of the same root name.
- The title is recognized as a nod to a well-known young-adult novel.
- Several people point out it’s a SIGBOVIK / April Fools–style piece, so the over-the-top “perfect” model and assumptions are intended as parody.
Humor and favorite bits
- Many highlight the “Extremely Reasonable Assumptions,” especially the single-gender world and the “Mayfly Parenthood” assumption where parents die after naming the child.
- Others enjoy the recursive self-citation about how parents mistakenly think “Kate” will be unique, and the acknowledgement of a non-author whose name doesn’t fit a regex.
- Visual jokes like dinosaur- and squid-shaped plots and a cropped ChatGPT prompt are praised.
Related work and nominative determinism
- Commenters link to real research on implicit egotism, name–career correlations, and nominative determinism (e.g., doctors whose surnames match their specialties).
- Other humorous name-themed papers and joke articles are cited for comparison.
Naming patterns, culture, and identity
- Discussion covers how immigrants choosing English names often prefer common, “fitting in” options, sometimes decades out of date.
- Trans communities are mentioned as another context where many independently converge on the same few names.
- Some argue family names can be more or less differentiated depending on country and history.
Baby-naming strategies and trends
- Parents describe deliberately using popularity data to avoid overly common names, while others report accidentally landing in popularity spikes.
- There is debate over “boring” vs. unique names, “creative” spellings, and naming after historical or religious figures.
- Several note cyclical trends: once-trendy names become dated markers of age, then may be revived by later generations.
Data, tools, and skepticism
- Commenters reference official baby-name datasets, visualization tools, and random-name generators.
- At least one person calls the model assumptions “bollocks,” while others emphasize the paper is meant as dry humor rather than serious theory.