The most popular baby names of 2021 revealed 👶

There's some new entries!

Author: Alex RossPublished 5th Oct 2022

It's one of the most talked about and eagerly awaited things when having a baby, and of course, it's pretty damn important too! We are talking about baby names! Whatever you choose to call your new arrival can be a difficult and sometimes VERY stressful decision, so we could all do with a little bit of inspiration.

With data taken from the 2021 Census, the Office for National Statistics have revealed the most popular baby names in England and Wales in 2021.

Replacing Oliver from 2020, Noah was the most popular boys' name in England and Wales in 2021, while Olivia remained the top name for girls for the sixth year in a row.

There was also a lot of new entries in 2021, with names such as Lara, Beatrice and Sara for girls and Blake, Brody, Kai, Rupert, Tobias and Nathan for boys in the Top 100.

The most popular baby names of 2021:

Top 10 most popular girls names:


10) Willow

Count: 2,067. Up 2 places from 2020.

9) Mia

Count: 2,168. Down 4 places from 2020.

8) Florence

Count: 2,180. Up 6 places from 2020.

7) Lily

Count: 2,182. Same position from 2020.

6) Freya

Count: 2,187. Up 6 places from 2020.

5) Ivy

Count: 2,245. Up 1 place from 2020.

4) Ava

Count: 2,576. Same position from 2020.

3) Isla

Count: 2,683. Same position from 2020.

2) Amelia

Count: 3,164. Same position from 2020.

1) Olivia

Count: 3,649. Same position from 2020.

Top 10 most popular boys names:


10) Henry

Count: 2,912. Up 1 place from 2020.

9) Archie

Count: 2,928. Same position from 2020.

8) Oscar

Count: 3,071. Down 1 position from 2020.

7) Harry

Count: 3,089. Up 1 position from 2020.

6) Leo

Count: 3,465. Same position from 2020.

5) Muhammad

Count: 3,722. Same position from 2020.

4) Arthur

Count: 3,766. Down 1 position from 2020.

3) George

Count: 4,141. Down 1 position from 2020.

2) Oliver

Count: 4,167. Down 1 position from 2020.

1) Noah

Count: 4,525. Up 3 positions from 2020.

James Tucker, Head of Health and Life Events Analysis, Office for National Statistics, said: "Noah has replaced Oliver as the most popular name for boys in 2021, moving Oliver into second place and ending an eight-year reign at the top. Olivia remained the most popular girls name in 2021, having held the top spot since 2016. Interestingly, Noah was not top in any of the English regions, but has risen up the ranks in most regions since last year to take first place overall.

While Noah and Olivia are enjoying their places at the top, some names could be in danger of falling out of favour. Leslie has had relatively little popularity in recent years with fewer than seven boys named each year since 2018. Others such as Clifford, Nigel and Norman have not fared much better with ten or fewer boys being named. Girls' names such as Glenda and Kerry, that were more common before, are also becoming endangered and we have seen less than five girls being named each year since 2018.

Popular culture continues to influence parents' baby name choices. Today we have also published analysis exploring cultural influences that could be inspiring baby name trends, from hit TV shows to musical icons."

You can see the full list of data right here.

Now read:

The baby names at risk of going EXTINCT in the UK

Celebrities expecting babies in the coming months

Top 20 baby names of 2022 so far revealed

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