How popular is the baby name Axel 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 Axel.

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Popularity of the baby name Axel


Posts that mention the name Axel

Popular baby names in France, 2023

Flag of France
Flag of France

Last year, the European country of France welcomed about 678,000 babies.

What were the most popular names among these babies? Louise and Gabriel.

Here are France’s top 50 girl names and top 50+ boy names of 2023:

Girl names

  1. Louise, 3,177 baby girls
  2. Ambre, 3,168
  3. Alba, 3,088
  4. Jade, 2,891
  5. Emma, 2,663
  6. Rose, 2,375
  7. Alma, 2,342
  8. Alice, 2,256
  9. Romy, 2,198
  10. Anna, 2,129
  11. Eva, 2,113
  12. Lina, 2,075
  13. Mia, 2,012
  14. Inaya, 1,845 (tie)
  15. Agathe, 1,845 (tie)
  16. Lou, 1,844
  17. Julia, 1,836
  18. Iris, 1,776
  19. Léna, 1,702
  20. Giulia, 1,679
  21. Charlie, 1,678
  22. Adèle, 1,663
  23. Victoire, 1,634
  24. Olivia, 1,612
  25. Chloé, 1,577
  26. Léa, 1,558
  27. Juliette, 1,544 (tie)
  28. Jeanne, 1,544 (tie)
  29. Luna, 1,480
  30. Nina, 1,478
  31. Nour, 1,415
  32. Léonie, 1,398
  33. Zoé, 1,374
  34. Sofia, 1,283
  35. Victoria, 1,247
  36. Romane, 1,241
  37. Lola, 1,217
  38. Lya, 1,151
  39. Ava, 1,149
  40. Alya, 1,146
  41. Lucie, 1,087
  42. Alix, 1,080
  43. Charlotte, 1,064
  44. Lyana, 1,048
  45. Elena, 1,029
  46. Inès, 1,012
  47. Mila, 1,009
  48. Emy, 993
  49. Margaux, 984
  50. Albane, 979

Boy names

  1. Gabriel, 4,527 baby boys
  2. Raphaël, 3,477
  3. Léo, 3,454
  4. Louis, 3,331
  5. Maël, 3,280
  6. Noah, 3,163
  7. Jules, 3,020
  8. Adam, 2,966
  9. Arthur, 2,915
  10. Isaac, 2,551
  11. Liam, 2,462
  12. Sacha, 2,446
  13. Eden, 2,387
  14. Lucas, 2,324
  15. Gabin, 2,246
  16. Léon, 2,226
  17. Mohamed, 2,138
  18. Hugo, 2,023
  19. Naël, 1,973
  20. Noé, 1,966
  21. Marceau, 1,960
  22. Aaron, 1,952
  23. Paul, 1,951
  24. Ethan, 1,858
  25. Ayden, 1,850
  26. Nathan, 1,697
  27. Marius, 1,620
  28. Théo, 1,613
  29. Ibrahim, 1,597
  30. Malo, 1,572
  31. Elio, 1,459
  32. Tom, 1,458
  33. Nino, 1,447
  34. Victor, 1,413
  35. Martin, 1,411 (tie)
  36. Eliott, 1,411 (tie)
  37. Mathis, 1,410
  38. Lyam, 1,371
  39. Gaspard, 1,349
  40. Imran, 1,277
  41. Milo, 1,198 (tie)
  42. Augustin, 1,198 (tie)
  43. Robin, 1,181
  44. Valentin, 1,173
  45. Timéo, 1,159
  46. Léandre, 1,157
  47. Axel, 1,151
  48. Antoine, 1,129
  49. Nolan, 1,128
  50. Tiago, 1,123 (3-way tie)
  51. Sohan, 1,123 (3-way tie)
  52. Côme, 1,123 (3-way tie)

More than 1,000 babies separated the #1 boy name (Gabriel) from the #2 boy name (Raphaël), while fewer than 10 separated the #1 girl name (Louise) from the #2 girl name (Ambre). Quite a contrast.

The girls’ top 100 included Lyna (57th), Apolline (64th), Clémence (70th), and Zélie (96th).

The boys’ top 100 included Kaïs (53rd), Mahé (66th), Livio (78th), and Timothée (95th).

Finally, here are France’s 2022 rankings, if you’d like to compare last year to the year before.

Sources: Classement des prénoms en France depuis 1900 – Insee, Demographic report 2023 – Insee

Image: Adapted from Flag of France (public domain)

Popular and unique baby names in Quebec (Canada), 2023

Flag of Quebec
Flag of Quebec

Of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada, Quebec is the second-largest in terms of both population (after Ontario) and area (after Nunavut).

Last year, Quebec welcomed close to 78,000 babies. What were the most popular names among these babies? Alice/Florence (tied) and Noah.

Here are Quebec’s top 50 girl names and top 50 boy names of 2023:

Girl names

  1. Alice, 465 baby girls (tie)
  2. Florence, 465 (tie)
  3. Emma, 456
  4. Olivia, 430
  5. Charlie, 415
  6. Charlotte, 405
  7. Livia, 359
  8. Lea, 326
  9. Beatrice, 300 (tie)
  10. Juliette, 300 (tie)
  11. Clara, 296
  12. Mila, 295
  13. Romy, 294 (tie)
  14. Sofia, 294 (tie)
  15. Rose, 291
  16. Zoe, 280
  17. Mia, 253
  18. Eva, 222
  19. Rosalie, 211
  20. Chloe, 208
  21. Leonie, 200
  22. Victoria, 189
  23. Flavie, 188 (tie)
  24. Julia, 188 (tie)
  25. Jade, 183
  26. Adele, 180 (tie)
  27. Elena, 180 (tie)
  28. Maeva, 177
  29. Billie, 175
  30. Amelia, 159 (tie)
  31. Jeanne, 159 (tie)
  32. Raphaelle, 158
  33. Ophelie, 145
  34. Sophia, 144
  35. Margot, 142
  36. Eleonore, 140
  37. Sophie, 133
  38. Elizabeth, 132
  39. Clemence, 127
  40. Ellie, 124 (tie)
  41. Flora, 124 (tie)
  42. Camille, 123 (3-way tie)
  43. Laura, 123 (3-way tie)
  44. Maya, 123 (3-way tie)
  45. Lily, 121
  46. Simone, 119
  47. Jasmine, 115
  48. Mathilde, 109
  49. Sarah, 105
  50. Anna, 104

Boy names

  1. Noah, 613 baby boys
  2. Liam, 556
  3. Leo, 549
  4. Thomas, 535
  5. William, 520
  6. Edouard, 495
  7. Jacob, 468
  8. Louis, 427
  9. Nathan, 400
  10. Arthur, 398
  11. Emile, 378
  12. Charles, 369
  13. Theo, 357
  14. Jules, 346
  15. Arnaud, 329
  16. James, 320
  17. Adam, 318
  18. Logan, 310
  19. Raphael, 299
  20. Felix, 293
  21. Theodore, 273
  22. Laurent, 272
  23. Lucas, 266
  24. Victor, 259
  25. Elliot, 258
  26. Eloi, 254
  27. Henri, 251
  28. Benjamin, 245
  29. Jackson, 233
  30. Gabriel, 218 (tie)
  31. Milan, 218 (tie)
  32. Olivier, 207
  33. Nolan, 201
  34. Samuel, 194
  35. Matheo, 189
  36. Eli, 188 (tie)
  37. Ethan, 188 (tie)
  38. Jayden, 180
  39. Antoine, 175
  40. Alexis, 172
  41. Leonard, 149
  42. Matteo, 147
  43. Jake, 146
  44. Robin, 143
  45. Zack, 135
  46. Tristan, 132
  47. Luca, 128 (tie)
  48. Mayson, 128 (tie)
  49. Axel, 127
  50. Malik, 126

The girls’ top 100 included Romane (52nd), Lily-Rose (72nd), Yasmine (78th), and Lyvia (89th).

The boys’ top 100 included Hubert (58th), Eliott (64th), Romeo (78th), and Philippe (85th).

And what about the names at the other end of the spectrum? Here’s a selection of the baby names that were bestowed just once in Quebec last year:

Unique girl namesUnique boy names
Ateret, Balkissa, Clovia, Dunnia, Elisapee, Fauve, Genia, Hestelle, Inuluk, Japnaaz, Kaudjak, Luluthia, Miskomin, Namu, Orzala, Pimprenelle, Pulammaq, Qiana, Rydia, Subby, Tanilla, Ulluriaq, Ummaluk, Valerina, Wilsie, Xiran, Yoldez, ZivahAuklin, Benno, Clavis, Deepak, Endri, Ferruccio, Galvany, Heston, Inukpak, Jassir, Keslin, Latevi, Melrick, Naullaq, Nipin, Orphe, Puulik, Rayler, Sorance, Tsalel, Tukalak, Uasheshkuan, Vladan, Wistaron, Xincheng, Yuutin, Zuryel

Some definitions/associations for a few of the above:

  • Ateret means “crown” in Hebrew.
  • Fauve is French for “tawny” and, by extension, can refer to a big cat (such as a lion).
  • Inukpak means “giant” in Inuktitut.
  • Miskomin means “raspberry” in Ojibwe.
  • Naullaq is based on the Inuktitut word naulaq, which refers to a harpoon head.
  • Nipin means “summer” in Cree.
  • Pimprenelle is French for “burnet,” which refers to herbs of the genus Sanguisorba.
  • Pulammaq means “root” in Inuktitut.
  • Uasheshkuan means “the sky is clear, cloudless” in Innu.
  • Ulliriaq means “star” in Inuktitut.
  • Yuutin means “it is windy” in East Cree.

I also spotted a single girl named Chaya Mushka, and two other babies — one girl and one boy — named Mispun, meaning “it is snowing” in East Cree.

Finally, here’s a link to Quebec’s 2022 rankings, if you’d like to compare.

Sources:

Image: Adapted from Flag of Quebec (public domain)

Popular and unique baby names in Sweden, 2023

Flag of Sweden
Flag of Sweden

Sweden tricked us, you guys.

Last year, Statistics Sweden ominously announced that it would “stop producing name statistics.”

It neglected to mention that the country’s baby name data would continue coming out every year — that the names were simply going to be handled by a different government agency (the Swedish Tax Agency) going forward.

I wanted to be annoyed about this deception, but my annoyance evaporated after I learned that the Swedish Tax Agency had released all of the country’s 2023 baby name data — meaning that we could finally check out Sweden’s rare and unique names (yay!).

So, without further ado, let’s take a look…

Sweden welcomed 100,051 babies in 2023. What were the most popular names among these babies? Vera and Noah.

Here are Sweden’s top 50 girl names and top 50 boy names of 2023:

Girl names

  1. Vera, 608 baby girls
  2. Elsa, 603
  3. Alma, 597
  4. Selma, 538
  5. Alice, 512
  6. Signe, 494
  7. Ellie, 490
  8. Olivia, 488
  9. Astrid, 470
  10. Ella, 467
  11. Stella, 447
  12. Maja, 442
  13. Freja, 434
  14. Saga, 426
  15. Alva, 415
  16. Agnes, 392
  17. Ebba, 381
  18. Leah, 375
  19. Alba, 365
  20. Hedda, 362
  21. Iris, 344
  22. Wilma, 341
  23. Ines, 339
  24. Alicia, 335
  25. Mila, 332
  26. Luna, 304
  27. Lilly, 292
  28. Sigrid, 288
  29. Elvira, 286
  30. Leia, 280
  31. Juni, 274
  32. Julia, 258
  33. Hilma, 256
  34. Clara, 253
  35. Majken, 242 (tie)
  36. Molly, 242 (tie)
  37. Ellen, 241
  38. Ester, 238 (tie)
  39. Lykke, 238 (tie)
  40. Lily, 236
  41. Nora, 232
  42. Ingrid, 226
  43. Nova, 223
  44. Edith, 205
  45. Livia, 204
  46. Sally, 203
  47. Lea, 198
  48. Tyra, 194
  49. Liv, 193
  50. Esther, 192

Boy names

  1. Noah, 687 baby boys
  2. Hugo, 652
  3. William, 565
  4. Liam, 558
  5. Nils, 536
  6. Oliver, 517
  7. Elias, 516
  8. Adam, 507
  9. August, 506
  10. Sam, 504
  11. Alfred, 485
  12. Otto, 479
  13. Leo, 463
  14. Leon, 415
  15. Frans, 414
  16. Charlie, 388
  17. Olle, 372
  18. Theo, 366
  19. Harry, 362
  20. Arvid, 351
  21. Ludvig, 350
  22. Malte, 345
  23. Ebbe, 338 (tie)
  24. Lucas, 338 (tie)
  25. Tage, 330
  26. Elliot, 327
  27. Henry, 326
  28. Adrian, 322
  29. Gabriel, 319
  30. Elton, 318
  31. Ted, 317
  32. Walter, 314
  33. Vincent, 296
  34. Alexander, 294 (tie)
  35. Oscar, 294 (tie)
  36. Valter, 293
  37. Benjamin, 282
  38. Noel, 274 (tie)
  39. Theodor, 274 (tie)
  40. Jack, 268 (tie)
  41. Viggo, 268 (tie)
  42. Axel, 264
  43. Albin, 256
  44. Melker, 251
  45. Levi, 240
  46. Isak, 236
  47. Dante, 233
  48. Lukas, 230
  49. Matteo, 226
  50. Hjalmar, 225

The top names of 2022, Astrid and William, dropped to ninth place and third place, respectively.

The boys’ top 100 included Ture (53rd), Vidar (55th), Loke (71st), and Bill (97th).

The girls’ top 100 included Tuva (66th), Stina (75th), Lo (78th), and Eira (81st).

Farther down on the girls’ list I spotted Madicken, which was given to 15 babies last year. Swedish author Astrid Lindgren featured a fictional 7-year-old girl named Margareta “Madicken” Engström in several of her children’s books. (Lindgren had named the character after a childhood friend, Anne-Marie, whose nickname was Madicken.)

And what about the names at the other end of the spectrum? Here’s a sampling of the more than 8,000 names that were bestowed just once in Sweden last year:

Unique girl namesUnique boy names
Älva, Bergþóra, Cyrine, Dahlina, Elfie, Frigga, Glittra, Holland, Iseline, Jinjin, Källa, Lavendel, Minélle, Neoliva, Ornina, Pommelinn, Qellie, Rauline, Sigunn, Thaïs, Undin, Virvla, Winta, Xanne, Yrja, ZtellaAsterix, Bornwell, Casbian, Delton, Ejnar, Frenne, Grimm, Hälge, Ingemund, Jingda, Kasjan, Lillebror, Mjalton, Nille, Öivind, Palomino, Qingfeng, Robiel, Skjómi, Toste, Uzeer, Villie, Williott, Xanto, Yosia, Zillas

Some definitions/associations for a few of the above:

  • Glittra means “to glitter” in Swedish.
  • Källa means “source” in Swedish. (Originally it referred to a source of water, such as a spring or a well.)
  • Lavendel means “lavender” in Swedish (and several other languages).
  • Lillebror means “little brother” in Swedish.
  • Mjalton refers to Mjältön, an island in Sweden.
  • Skjómi, an Old Norse word meaning “a flickering light,” was used metaphorically in Skaldic poetry to refer to a drawn sword.
  • Virvla means “to whirl” in Swedish. (The related noun virvel means “vortex.”)

Sources: Elsa och Noah populäraste namnen hos nyfödda – Skatteverket, Namn på nyfödda – Skatteverket, Population statistics – Statistics Sweden, Madicken (Mardie) – Astrid Lindgren, Wiktionary, skjómi – Lexicon Poeticum, skjómi – Old Norse Dictionary

Image: Adapted from Flag of Sweden (public domain)

Popular baby names in England and Wales (UK), 2022

Flag of the United Kingdom
Flag of the United Kingdom

The 2022 rankings for England and Wales are finally here!

Two years ago, England and Wales welcomed over to 605,000 babies.

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

Here are England and Wales’ top 50 girl names and top 50 boy names of 2022:

Girl names

  1. Olivia, 3,289 baby girls
  2. Amelia, 2,884
  3. Isla, 2,613
  4. Ava, 2,293
  5. Lily, 2,281
  6. Ivy, 2,195
  7. Freya, 2,162
  8. Florence, 1,971
  9. Isabella, 1,927
  10. Mia, 1,868
  11. Willow, 1,867
  12. Sienna, 1,859
  13. Poppy, 1,848
  14. Sophia, 1,813
  15. Elsie, 1,763
  16. Rosie, 1,686
  17. Grace, 1,675
  18. Millie, 1,670
  19. Emily, 1,609
  20. Sofia, 1,576
  21. Daisy, 1,563
  22. Evelyn, 1,560
  23. Evie, 1,534
  24. Phoebe, 1,531
  25. Ella, 1,522
  26. Charlotte, 1,496
  27. Harper, 1,449
  28. Maya, 1,406
  29. Matilda, 1,363
  30. Ruby, 1,271
  31. Aria, 1,229
  32. Penelope, 1,206
  33. Hallie, 1,202
  34. Luna, 1,174
  35. Bonnie, 1,148
  36. Ada, 1,138
  37. Emilia, 1,128
  38. Alice, 1,119
  39. Sophie, 1,115
  40. Esme, 1,101
  41. Isabelle, 1,089
  42. Maisie, 1,072
  43. Violet, 1,057
  44. Delilah, 1,054
  45. Mila, 1,042
  46. Eva, 1,029
  47. Arabella, 1,019
  48. Maeve, 990
  49. Aurora, 972
  50. Mabel, 964

Boy names

  1. Noah, 4,586 baby boys
  2. Muhammad, 4,177
  3. George, 3,699
  4. Oliver, 3,691
  5. Leo, 3,610
  6. Arthur, 3,603
  7. Oscar, 2,883
  8. Theodore, 2,835
  9. Theo, 2,808
  10. Freddie, 2,760
  11. Archie, 2,684
  12. Luca, 2,625
  13. Henry, 2,624
  14. Jack, 2,431
  15. Harry, 2,403
  16. Charlie, 2,391
  17. Alfie, 2,304
  18. Arlo, 2,176
  19. Thomas, 2,101
  20. Teddy, 2,030
  21. Finley, 2,025
  22. Jacob, 1,892
  23. Tommy, 1,824
  24. William, 1,806
  25. Lucas, 1,771
  26. Isaac, 1,733
  27. Mohammed, 1,694
  28. Alexander, 1,651
  29. Albie, 1,641
  30. Roman, 1,640
  31. Edward, 1,612
  32. Jude, 1,601
  33. Elijah, 1,549
  34. James, 1,534
  35. Joshua, 1,478
  36. Reuben, 1,475
  37. Max, 1,459
  38. Rory, 1,435
  39. Sebastian, 1,409
  40. Louie, 1,396
  41. Adam, 1,374
  42. Mason, 1,369
  43. Ethan, 1,268 (tie)
  44. Hudson, 1,268 (tie)
  45. Harrison, 1,236
  46. Ezra, 1,217
  47. Hugo, 1,193
  48. Louis, 1,184
  49. Reggie, 1,159
  50. Joseph, 1,158

According to the press release from the Office of National Statistics…

  • In the girls’ top 10, Isabella replaced Willow.
  • In the boys’ top 10, Theodore, Theo, and Freddie replaced Harry, Henry, and Archie.
  • In the girls’ top 100, Ophelia, Ottilie, Eloise, Nova, and Fatima replaced Holly, Heidi, Anna, Amber, and Beatrice.
  • In the boys’ top 100, Leon, Elias, Musa, Axel, and Ibrahim replaced Charles, Harvey, Ollie, and Nathan.

England and Wales are two separate countries within the United Kingdom. (The rest of the UK is made up of Scotland and Northern Ireland.) In terms of population, England has about 56.5 million residents, whereas Wales has around 3.1 million.

Here are the top 10 girl names and top 10 boy names in each of the two countries individually:

EnglandWales
Top girl names1. Olivia, 3,144 baby girls
2. Amelia, 2,755
3. Isla, 2,476
4. Ava, 2,179
5. Lily, 2,158
6. Ivy, 2,081
7. Freya, 2,051
8. Florence, 1,878
9. Isabella, 1,847
10. Sienna, 1,788
1. Olivia, 145 baby girls
2. Isla, 137
3. Amelia 129
4. Lily, 122
5. Elsie, 120
6. Ava, 114 (tie)
7. Ivy, 114 (tie)
8. Millie, 111
9. Freya, 110
10. Ella, 104
Top boy names1. Noah, 4,320 baby boys
2. Muhammad, 4,136
3. George, 3,548
4. Oliver, 3,502
5. Leo, 3,470
6. Arthur, 3,423
7. Oscar, 2,729
8. Theodore, 2,720
9. Freddie, 2,620
10. Theo, 2,611
1. Noah, 264 baby boys
2. Theo, 196
3. Oliver, 188
4. Arthur, 180
5. Luca, 166
6. Oscar, 154
7. George, 149
8. Archie, 144
9. Freddie, 140
10. Leo, 139

And now let’s check out a selection of names from the other end of the spectrum.

Each of the rare names below was given to just 3 babies in England and Wales (combined) in 2022:

Rare girl namesRare boy names
Accalia, Briseis, Casiana, Diellza, Ettalie, Farishta, Gwenna, Hestia, Irida, Iseult, Jun, Kanika, Larsa, Myfanwy, Nehizena, Ovelia, Prunella, Quinne, Renaelia, Siella, Tamima, Urte, Varnika, Wafaa, Xiana, Yuet, ZartashaAurion, Boyan, Cary, Daxson, Eifion, Flavian, Granth, Henrick, Ilai, Jasser, Klaidi, Llyr, Mordy, Naoise, Oax, Petrit, Quillon, Ransford, Sanchez, Torrin, Usaid, Volodymyr, Wolfy, Xand, Yudhveer, Zaamin

Renaelia’s usage was no doubt inspired by British influencer Imogen Horton, who welcomed a baby girl named Renaelia in September of 2022. Several weeks after the birth, Imogen posted a video in which she and her husband Spencer revealed the baby’s name and explained how it was coined.

Volodymyr’s usage may have been influenced by Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

Finally, here’s a link to England and Wales’ 2021 rankings, if you’d like to check them out.

Sources:

Image: Adapted from Flag of the United Kingdom (public domain)