Meteorologists in the UK, Ireland and the Netherlands have announced this year’s north Atlantic winter storm names, chosen after 50,000 suggestions were submitted by the public.
Amy, Bram and Chandra will be the first named storms of winter 2025-2026, the Met Office said on Monday.
The Met Office, together with its partners Met Éireann and the Dutch national weather forecasting service, KNMI, began naming storms in 2015 to raise awareness and help people prepare for severe weather. The climate crisis is shifting weather patterns, intensifying wind-rain extremes in some parts of the UK, which are also becoming more susceptible to flooding.
North Atlantic storms are named alphabetically, missing out Q, U, X, Y and Z. Name suggestions are submitted by the public, and factors considered by meteorologists in choosing a name include how difficult it is to pronounce, whether it has different meanings across the different countries, or could be controversial.
Amy was the most popular female name submitted in the UK, while Dave was suggested in tribute to “my beloved husband who can snore three times louder than any storm”.
Isla was the most popular name for I, with many submissions about little girls who “leave chaos in their wakes”, while Violet was submitted in honour of a daughter “every bit as fierce and unstoppable as a storm” after being born at 27 weeks while her mother was unwell, the Met Office said.
The choice of Stevie for S was inspired by a little girl named after Stevie Nicks of Fleetwood Mac for the band’s song Dreams, which includes the line: “Thunder only happens when it’s raining.”
Pets also featured in the nominations, with one cat, Oscar, described as a “good boy, but crazy when he gets the zoomies”.
The other storm names, running from early September, when the likelihood of low-pressure systems and the potential for storms severe enough to be named increases, are Eddie, Fionnuala, Gerard, Hannah, Janna, Kasia, Lilith, Marty, Nico, Patrick, Ruby, Tadhg, Violet and Wubbo.
The north Atlantic naming group – the UK, Ireland and the Netherlands – name storms when they have the potential to cause medium to high impact across the three countries. Wind speed is the primary determinant, but the impact of rain and snow are also considered.
In the past year, running from September to August, six storms were named, reaching the letter F with Storm Floris last month.
January’s Storm Éowyn was one of the most severe to hit the UK and Ireland in the past decade, the Met Office said, with 100mph (160km/h) winds recorded. Three people died and there were widespread power cuts and damage across Ireland, Scotland and the Isle of Man.
Rebekah Hicks, the deputy chief meteorologist at the Met Office, said: “Naming storms isn’t just about giving them a label, it’s about making sure people take notice.
“When a storm has a name, it becomes easier for the media and public to talk about it, share information and prepare … It’s a simple step that can make a big difference.”
Suggestions for storm names can be submitted at any time on the Met Office’s website.
