Top West Midlands baby names revealed - find out how popular yours is where you live
The most popular baby names in the West Midlands have been revealed.
For the first time in eight years, Oliver is no longer the most popular name for baby boys in the UK, being replaced by Noah.
Neither name was top in the West Midlands though. Instead, Muhammad - the most popular boys' name in four regions out of nine across England and Wales - was top.
For girls names, Olivia topped the lists for both the UK and West Midlands, while Freya - sixth overall in the country - made the region's top five.
Announcing the most popular names, an Office for National Statistics spokesperson said: "Although Noah was the most popular boys' name in England and Wales overall in 2021, this was not the case regionally. Across England's nine regions, Muhammad was the most popular boys' name in four regions, George was the most popular in three, and Arthur and Oliver were the most popular in one region each.
"In 2021, one-fifth (19.9 per cent) of local authorities had at least one top boys' name that was not in the top 10 for England and Wales."
The ONS also reported that the long-running trend of older mothers giving their babies more traditional names, and younger mothers giving more modern and shortened versions of traditional names continued in 2021.
Last year half of the top 10 boys' names for mothers aged under 25 years were shortened versions of traditional names, while only one made the top 10 for baby names for mothers aged 35 years and over.
Elijah and Arlo only appeared in the top 10 boys' names for mothers aged under 25 years. More traditional names such as Alexander and Thomas only featured in the top 10 boys' names for mothers aged over 35.
Willow, Isabella, Harper, and Delilah were other girls' names only seen in the top 10 for under-25 mothers, but names such as Charlotte, Grace, Sophie, and Sophia were more likely for those aged 35+.
Here are the most popular names across the West Midlands last year, along with the number of babies given the names.
Top West Midlands boys' names in 2021
Muhammad - 667
Noah - 447
Oliver - 378
Arthur - 362
George - 352
Mohammed - 333
Leo - 320
Archie - 318
Oscar - 310
Charlie - 290
Top West Midlands girls' names in 2021
Olivia - 356
Amelia - 342
Isla - 234
Freya - 230
Ava - 228
Ivy - 215
Willow - 203
Rosie - 196
Lily - 193
Grace - 191
You can also find out how popular your name was in your local authority last year.
