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GENERATION Z CONCERNED OVER NAME OF NEXT GENERATION

May 24 2009

Washington, DC – Throughout the 20th century demographers and census takers revolutionized the process of naming generations. The G.I. Generation, the Baby Boom, and Generation X all defined the population and gained credence in popular culture that still resonates today. That growth in popularity of generational naming
continued through the end of the century with the birth of Generation Y and into the 21st century with the rise of Generation Z. Now though the generation naming business has become a victim of its own success with the alphabet now out of letters.

Though the Baby Boom generation long enjoyed the benefits of massive mindshare for decades, the publication of Douglas Coupland’s novel ‘Generation X: Tales for an Accelerated Culture’ made their children the most dominant and spoken about generation. It also firmly established a new and, as many warned, limited naming structure that has now run its course. Now as we enter the second decade of the new century, a generation yet to be born is patiently waiting for those alive to work past the lack of foresight possessed by their ancestors.

“It would be unfair to blame Coupland directly for this
situation. His use of the term ‘Generation X’ was a genuine organic expression. The fact that it was picked up and used while fortunate to his bank account and legacy was really not of his doing. If he had been able to direct things and knew exactly what would come of his humble little book, I’m sure he would have started with ‘A’,” said Scrape TV Sociology analyst Andrew Keep. “Looking at it now one might think that Generation A wouldn’t have the same cache and caught on with the public in the same way, but there is nothing intrinsic in the letter X that makes it more appealing. My guess is people would have grasped to any demonym as long as it referred to them specifically.”

Experts in the field of generation naming have long been working on the task of naming the new generation which are expected to be born in the early to middle part of the next decade. Though historically generations have been named while they are in progress, the success of the previous three generations has inspired not only namers but marketers looking to get a head start.

“By giving this upcoming generation a name before they’ve even begun to exist, companies can begin to form product and ideologies. They may in fact be able to manipulate the progress of this new generation by starting things early. Rather than reacting to the whims of what people want, they will simply deliver it to them all wrapped and ready to go,” continued Keep. “A lot of
companies gained experience with that. The rise of Disney celebrities like Miley Cyrus and others like Avril Lavigne have proven how easy it is to manipulate an audience. If they can start early they can prevent losing dollars on newborns and toddlers, a market that has always had limited penetration for marketers.”

Debate has ranged from starting the alphabet fresh to using different combinations of letters and/or numbers and even more radical ideas like using colours or symbols, similar to the name change employed by Prince in the 1990’s.

“One thing that most people agree on is on issuing a name is a bad idea. You run the risk of alienating the generation as they get older and it could be a whole lot harder to market. Short and simple is the lesson they learned from Generation X and most are eager to continue in that style. That will also help with what is expected to be a record low attention span,” continued Keep. “It also has to be cool in some way. Unless it really grabs people no one is going to want to class themselves as a part of that generation and that would be an utter disaster. It’s going to be a hard choice and there’s not a whole lot of time left.”

U.S. naming officials have considered delaying the birth of the newest generation until a name can be worked out but have recently deemed such an effort largely impractical.

William Ashford, Business Correspondent

NEWS > BUSINESS > GENERATION Z CONCERNED OVER NAME OF NEXT GENERATION