How popular is the baby name Universe in the United States right now? How popular was it historically? Use the popularity graph and data table below to find out! Plus, see all the blog posts that mention the name Universe.

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Popularity of the baby name Universe


Posts that mention the name Universe

Popular and unique baby names in Alberta (Canada), 2021

Flag of Alberta
Flag of Alberta

Last year, the Canadian province of Alberta welcomed roughly 50,000 babies — almost 26,000 boys and over 24,000 girls.

What were the most popular names among these 2021 babies? Olivia and Noah.

Here are the top-10 lists by gender:

Girl Names

  1. Olivia, 210 baby girls
  2. Charlotte, 166
  3. Ava, 165
  4. Emma, 163
  5. Amelia, 160
  6. Sophia, 137
  7. Isla, 135
  8. Abigail, 120
  9. Evelyn and Chloe, 119 each (tie)
  10. Aria, 112

Boy Names

  1. Noah, 274 baby boys
  2. Jack, 219
  3. Oliver, 208
  4. Liam, 197
  5. Theodore, 191
  6. William, 174
  7. Ethan, 162
  8. Levi, 148
  9. Benjamin, 147
  10. Henry, 146

In the girls’ top 10, Evelyn, Chloe and Aria replaced Emily and Lily. (Three replace two because of the tie for 9th place.)

In the boys’ top 10, Ethan and Henry replaced Lucas and Owen. (Maverick, which has been rising steadily over the last few years, reached 13th in 2021 and could potentially enter the top 10 in 2022.)

Rare baby names that were bestowed just once in Alberta last year include…

Unique Girl NamesUnique Boy Names
Anangokaa, Arendelle, Bluejay, Chickadee, Chokecherry, Dafflin, Eberle, Finvola, Guillemette, Hemley, Izna, Jisu, Khizra, Lunafreya, Maximina, Nicêhis, Oromia, Pernilla, Queniva, Roux-Zelle, Shimmer, Skadi, Thylane, Ulyana, Valhalla, Winlinna, Xyrille, Yuzuki, ZitraAtrium, Brome, Calvince, Donlathee, Eberle, Fidelcastro, Gambit, Heimdallr, Itthipat, Jaiku, Kihêw, Kikinaw, Lefty, Makisig, Malësor, Nashford, Orca, Peanut, Qamber, Raistlin, Strive, Te-Ahumairangi, Totem, Universe, Valvatorez, Waseskwan, Xef, Yosiah, Zevry

Some explanations and/or potential influences for a few of the above:

  • Anangokaa means “there are (many) stars” in Ojibwe.
  • Arendelle is the name of a kingdom in the movie Frozen.
  • Brome refers to various types of grass in the genus Bromus.
  • Eberle — given to one girl and one boy last year — could refer to hockey player Jordan Eberle, who played with the Edmonton Oilers during the 2010s.
  • Fidel Castro was the revolutionary/statesman who led the island nation of Cuba for nearly five decades.
  • Gambit (besides being a word) is an X-Men character.
  • Heimdallr (besides being a Norse god) is a Marvel character.
  • Kikinaw means “our house/home” in Cree.
  • Kihêw means “eagle” in Cree.
  • Lunafreya is a character from the video game Final Fantasy XV.
  • Makisig means “elegant” or “gallant” in Tagalog.
  • Malësor means “highlander” in Albanian.
  • Nicêhis means “my little heart” or “my dear heart” in Cree.
  • Raistlin is a Dragonlance character.
  • Skadi (besides being a giantess in Norse mythology) is a character in the TV series Vikings.
  • Te Ahumairangi is the name of a hill in Wellington, New Zealand.
  • Valvatorez is a character from the video game Disgaea 4.
  • Waseskwan means “the sky is clearing (after a storm)” in Cree.

One other name that stood out to me is Bauer, given to 7 baby boys and 1 baby girl in 2021. I was paying close attention to the hockey playoffs this year, and I couldn’t help but notice “Bauer” everywhere — on sticks, on gloves, on helmets, etc. It makes me wonder how many of the baby Bauers out there (both in Canada and in the U.S.) have been named — either intentionally or inadvertently — after the ice hockey equipment brand.

Finally, here are the 2020 rankings for Alberta, if you’d like to compare.

Sources: Alberta’s Top Baby Names, Olivia and Noah most popular baby names in 2021, Olivia, Noah continue reign as most popular Alberta baby names, The Ojibwe People’s Dictionary, Online Cree Dictionary, Wiktionary

Image: Adapted from Flag of Alberta (public domain)

The top boy-name debuts of 2018

lotus bud

The top boy-name debuts in the U.S. baby name data last year were:

  1. Jahseh, 65 baby boys
  2. Thielen, 21
  3. Daer, 17
  4. Amell, 12
  5. Daesyn, 12
  6. Ulugbek, 12
  7. Vayu, 12
  8. Lavie, 11
  9. Liano, 11
  10. Oaklynn, 11
  11. Rhaegar, 11
  12. Sirroyal, 11
  13. Truu, 11
  14. Usmon, 11
  15. Weller, 11

Some of the other debuts include: Baz, Xylo, Euro, Sensei, Sicario, Gaurik, Ludo, Soldier, Tritt, Jasahd, Muir, Ozymandias, Thanatos, Ao, Callisto, Charm, Freyr, Garrix, Gursehaj, Jalex, Kenmari, Khal, Koe, Kyloren, Ludovico, Oso, Rovanio, Selleck, Solstice, Swae, Tayceon, Acai, Beacon, Glauk, Glavine, Horizon, Jorniel, Kawaii, Kentucky, Kreek, Perfect, Precise, Prevail, Rehoboth, Sircarter, Solar, Universe, Wentz, Westbrook, Yanciel, Zaytoven

Sircarter was influenced by Sir Carter, the son of Beyoncé and Jay-Z. Do you have explanations for any of the other debuts?

P.S. Wondering what a “debut” name is? Debut names were too rare to appear in the SSA data in any previous year (1880-2017). In order to debut, they need to be given to at least 5 babies of one gender or the other within a single year.

Source: SSA

Image: Adapted from LotusBud0048a (public domain) by Frank “Fg2” Gualtieri

The top girl-name debuts of 2018

lotus bud

The top girl-name debuts in the U.S. baby name data last year were:

Some of the other debuts include: Annifer, Dava, Enzleigh, Katyayani, Lunamae, Mazuri, Attley, Coralena, Loujain, Townes, Gurmehar, Orabella, Vaia, Aerolyn, Elegance, Nyayla, Tillian, Universe, Yosra, Zhaviah, Zyna, Alouette, Anyfer, Bilge, Cardi, Chicago, Elite, Geles, Gentree, Ikora, Lunagrace, Menorah, Modesire, Pyrrha, Riverrose, Siloam, Versace, Willianny, Zelilah, Annajames, Arrowyn, Bellanova, Chancellor, Cloud, Ellanese, Enzo, Erabelle, Ffion, Fiammetta, Foreign, Ixora, Krew, Lunamaria, Mattel, Miqueen, Noir, Novamae, Peru, Sumnima, Tomiris, Uinise, Videlle, York

Zhavia (and Jhavia, and Zaviah) were influenced by singer Zhavia Ward, who was on the TV show The Four in 2018. Do you have explanations for any of the other debuts?

P.S. Wondering what a “debut” name is? Debut names were too rare to appear in the SSA data in any previous year (1880-2017). In order to debut, they need to be given to at least 5 babies of one gender or the other within a single year.

Source: SSA

Image: Adapted from LotusBud0048a (public domain) by Frank “Fg2” Gualtieri

Popular and unique baby names in Alberta (Canada), 2018

Flag of Alberta
Flag of Alberta

According to the government of Alberta, the most popular baby names in the Canadian province in 2018 were Olivia and Liam.

Here are Alberta’s top 10 girl names and top 10 boy names of 2018:

Girl Names
1. Olivia, 235 baby girls
2. Emma, 230
3. Charlotte, 175
4. Emily, 164
5. Ava, 161
6. Abigail, 153
7. Harper, 150
8. Sophia, 146
9. Amelia, 145
10. Elizabeth, 130

Boy Names
1. Liam, 225 baby boys
2. Oliver, 212
3. Noah, 199
4. Ethan, 188
5. Logan & Lucas, 182 each (tie)
6. Jacob, 181
7. William, 178
8. Benjamin, 176
9. Jack, 167
10. Alexander & James, 158 each (tie)

In the girls’ top 10, Harper and Elizabeth replaced Isabella, Aria, Chloe and Lily.

New to the boys’ top 10 are Alexander and James. (No replacements due to ties.)

Rare baby names that were bestowed just once in Alberta last year include…

Unique Girl NamesUnique Boy Names
Aleftina, Assurance, Balsam, Clarenelle, Desneiges, Eulogia, Finja, Geo, Havolyn, Iffoxla, Iracebeth, Joxerlee, Kinnitty, Lemon-Marie, Mirdza, Nesslin, Ozzlynn, Progress, Quindalyn, Rizabell, Stiorra, Tavery, Trusarra, Urveen, Vemia, Wichahpi, Xianelle, Yubelissa, Zenley, ZhinetorArchange, Beauxbandy, Chapter, Dax-Goku, Durden, Einjehl, Fristan, George-lucas, Grey-Cloud, Homeostasie, Irwin, Jhelton, Krypton, Lonnie, Mycroft, Nitrix, Obasha, Pavanga, Quiel, Rhonj, Scythe, Supremo, Tadmor, Thorpal, Untred, Valour, Wilmarion, Xylas, Yuzhi, Zackon

And a few more single-use girl names, all space-themed: Venus, Jupiter, Saturn, Galaxy, Universe.

Possible explanations for a few of the above:

  • Iracebeth (based on the word irascible) was the name given to the Red Queen in the 2010 Tim Burton movie Alice in Wonderland.
  • Durden was the surname of the main character in Fight Club. (I’m very surprised this one has never appeared in the U.S. data before, frankly.)
  • Mycroft Holmes was Sherlock’s older brother. Mycroft AI, “the world’s first open source assistant,” was named after Mycroft Holmes.
  • Nitrix is a brand-name bodybuilding supplement described as a “concentrated nitric oxide precursor.”
  • Rhonj happens to be the acronym for The Real Housewives of New Jersey. Could this be a Real Housewives acronym being used as a baby name?!

In 2017, the top two names in Alberta were Olivia and Noah.

Sources: Alberta’s Top Baby Names, Alberta’s top baby names for 2018

Image: Adapted from Flag of Alberta (public domain)