UK: New study reveals UK’s quirkiest house names

• Forget Dun Roamin, now we're Dun Tawkin, Dun Struglyn and Dun Servin 

The great British sense of humour is alive and well, especially when it comes to naming homes. A study by Norwich Union Insurance* has revealed that while the classic “Dun Roamin” is still going strong, it’s picked up a few eccentric neighbours along the way.

"Dun Struglyn" may have been chosen by weary homeowners, while a military bent may have led others to call theirs “Dun Soldrin”. “Dun Servin” could be favourite with retired pub landlords, while jaded students could well have chosen “Dun Learnin”. There are others on the same theme such as “Dun Farmin”, “Dun Talkin” or “Dun Snapyn” too.

However Norwich Union’s data also shows that behind the humour, tradition prevails. The most popular UK house name in 2007 is “The Cottage”, followed by “Rose Cottage” and “The Bungalow”, while “Dun Roamin” remains a firm favourite and comes up 100 times in Norwich Union’s records.

Norwich Union’s top ten British house names

Further research** carried out by Norwich Union, who insures one in five UK homes, revealed that this centuries old custom is still going strong, with nearly one in three (32%) stating they have lived in a house with a name and 30% saying they would consider personalising a new home with a name.

Simon Warsop, head of data and statistics at Norwich Union, said the research proves that Brits remain the masters of self-deprecating wit: “The great British tradition of naming homes is still going strong and our data shows that the public are more than happy to poke fun at themselves or their lifestyles with their house names. There may even come a time when the Rose Cottages are replaced by the Dun Everythings!

"Our data also shows that we’re still proud of where we live and we want our homes to reflect our personalities – however weird and wonderful they might be!”

House naming is an old British custom which began with the gentry naming their halls, manors and castles, but the custom gradually spread to the masses and normal folk began naming their homes too. Since an Act of Parliament in 1765 all addresses were required to have a number and street name, but that doesn’t mean that Brits can’t personalise their homes with a house name too.

However there’s just one house moniker “Llamedos” that had the Norwich Union experts baffled when they discovered nearly 100 variations on the name. Was it a traditional Welsh name or perhaps a reminder of a villa in Spain? But then they read it backwards and it took on a whole new meaning – some homeowners clearly just want to shut their door on all the troubles outside…

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Enquiries:

Emilie Lien
Lexis PR
E-mail: elien@lexispr.com
Telephone: 020 7908 6421 / 07957 941 475

Rebecca Holmes
Norwich Union Press Office
E-mail: rebecca.l.holmes@norwich-union.co.uk
Telephone: 01603 354 346 / 07800 690731

Notes to Editors:

* Addresses given by members of the public to Norwich Union over the past three years.

** Fieldwork was undertaken by YouGov between 14 and 16 March 2007. Total research sample size was 2,292 adults. Survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all GB adults (aged 18+).

• Norwich Union is the UK’s largest general insurer with a market share of around 15%, with a focus on insurance for individuals and small businesses.
• It is a leading provider of life, pensions and investment products and one of the largest financial adviser (FA) providers. FAs provide over 70% of the company's long-term savings business in the UK.
• Norwich Union’s news releases and a selection of images are available from Aviva's internet press centre at www.aviva.com/media