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Most popular baby names revealed as Oliver is knocked off top spot for boys after eight years

After eight years Oliver is no longer the most popular name for baby boys.

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The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has revealed the most popular first names for babies in 2021 using birth registration data from across the United Kingdom, with some changes in both the boys and girls lists.

New names have appeared in the top 10 at the expense of others which have been popular for decades.

In the boys' list, Oliver - the most popular name for eight consecutive years - has been replaced at the top by Noah, which was fourth in 2020 and 16th in 2011. Meanwhile, Jack - misses out on a spot in the top 10 for the first time since 1996.

Meanwhile Florence and Willow make the top 10 names for girls for the first time in 26 years. Along with Freya, they replace Isabella, Rosie and Sophia. Olivia remains top for the sixth year running.

In total, 4,525 baby boys were named Noah in 2021, and 3,649 girls were named Olivia, up from 3,640 in 2020.

James Tucker, Head of Health and Life Events Analysis at the ONS 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."

Research suggested that famous figures - both real and fictional - have again influenced naming trends.

The ONS said Luca entered the top 30, partly in thanks to the Pixar fantasy film of the same name: from fewer than 200 boys being named Luca in 1996, there were more than 1,800 last year.

Names such as Ezra and Mabel have also seen large increases in popularity thanks to singers George Ezra and Mabel.

Mr Tucker also pointed out names that are falling out of favour.

"Leslie has had relatively little popularity in recent years with fewer than seven boys named each year since 2018," he added. "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."

Here are the top 100 names in 2021 for boys and girls.

Most popular baby boy names

  1. Noah

  2. Oliver

  3. George

  4. Arthur

  5. Muhammad

  6. Leo

  7. Harry

  8. Oscar

  9. Archie

  10. Henry

  11. Theodore

  12. Freddie

  13. Jack

  14. Charlie

  15. Theo

  16. Alfie

  17. Jacob

  18. Thomas

  19. Finley

  20. Arlo

  21. William

  22. Lucas

  23. Roman

  24. Tommy

  25. Isaac

  26. Teddy

  27. Alexander

  28. Luca

  29. Edward

  30. James

  31. Joshua

  32. Albie

  33. Elijah

  34. Max

  35. Mohammed

  36. Reuben

  37. Mason

  38. Sebastian

  39. Rory

  40. Jude

  41. Louie

  42. Benjamin

  43. Ethan

  44. Adam

  45. Hugo

  46. Joseph

  47. Reggie

  48. Ronnie

  49. Harrison

  50. Louis

  51. Ezra

  52. Jaxon

  53. Logan

  54. Daniel

  55. Zachary

  56. Samuel

  57. Dylan

  58. Albert

  59. Hudson

  60. Hunter

  61. Frederick

  62. David

  63. Rowan

  64. Jesse

  65. Frankie

  66. Toby

  67. Oakley

  68. Grayson

  69. Carter

  70. Riley

  71. Felix

  72. Finn

  73. Bobby

  74. Blake

  75. Sonny

  76. Caleb

  77. Gabriel

  78. Michael

  79. Jasper

  80. Alfred

  81. Otis

  82. Stanley

  83. Milo

  84. Mohammad

  85. Ralph

  86. Liam

  87. Chester

  88. Ellis

  89. Elliot

  90. Brody

  91. Charles

  92. Kai

  93. Rupert

  94. Yusuf

  95. Harvey

  96. Ollie

  97. Jackson

  98. Tobias

  99. Nathan

  100. Myles

Most popular baby girl names

  1. Olivia

  2. Amelia

  3. Isla

  4. Ava

  5. Ivy

  6. Freya

  7. Lily

  8. Florence

  9. Mia

  10. Willow

  11. Rosie

  12. Sophia

  13. Isabella

  14. Grace

  15. Daisy

  16. Sienna

  17. Poppy

  18. Elsie

  19. Emily

  20. Ella

  21. Evelyn

  22. Phoebe

  23. Sofia

  24. Evie

  25. Charlotte

  26. Harper

  27. Millie

  28. Matilda

  29. Maya

  30. Sophie

  31. Alice

  32. Emilia

  33. Isabelle

  34. Ruby

  35. Luna

  36. Maisie

  37. Aria

  38. Penelope

  39. Mila

  40. Bonnie

  41. Eva

  42. Hallie

  43. Eliza

  44. Ada

  45. Violet

  46. Esme

  47. Arabella

  48. Imogen

  49. Jessica

  50. Delilah

  51. Lottie

  52. Chloe

  53. Thea

  54. Layla

  55. Eleanor

  56. Aurora

  57. Margot

  58. Mabel

  59. Erin

  60. Elizabeth

  61. Emma

  62. Scarlett

  63. Harriet

  64. Lola

  65. Nancy

  66. Orla

  67. Ayla

  68. Rose

  69. Zara

  70. Iris

  71. Robyn

  72. Bella

  73. Molly

  74. Olive

  75. Maria

  76. Lyla

  77. Maeve

  78. Ellie

  79. Gracie

  80. Lyra

  81. Darcie

  82. Maryam

  83. Edith

  84. Heidi

  85. Lucy

  86. Myla

  87. Amelie

  88. Amber

  89. Hannah

  90. Summer

  91. Eden

  92. Jasmine

  93. Elodie

  94. Clara

  95. Holly

  96. Lilly

  97. Anna

  98. Lara

  99. Beatrice

  100. Sara