How popular is the baby name Benjamin 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 Benjamin.

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Popularity of the baby name Benjamin


Posts that mention the name Benjamin

Popular and unique baby names in Uruguay, 2020

Flag of Uruguay
Flag of Uruguay

According to Uruguay’s Dirección Nacional de Identificación Civil (DNIC), the most popular baby names in the country in 2020 were technically Emma and Juan.

But if accented “María” and unaccented “Maria” had been counted together, María would have easily taken the #1 spot.

Uruguay’s baby name rankings consist of girl and boy names mixed together on a single list. The data mostly represents first-name usage, but does include some second-name usage as well. (This is because the rankings are created from Uruguayan identity card data, and Uruguayans are permitted to add up to two given names to their ID cards.)

That said, here are Uruguay’s top 100+ baby names of 2020:

  1. Juan, 861 babies
  2. Emma, 682
  3. Mateo, 611
  4. María, 564
  5. Julieta, 495
  6. Martina, 477
  7. Felipe, 460
  8. Lorenzo, 408
  9. Isabella, 400
  10. Catalina, 383
  11. Maria, 378
  12. Sofía, 372
  13. Emilia, 358
  14. Thiago, 354
  15. Santino, 347
  16. Lucas, 334
  17. Dante, 330
  18. Lautaro, 327
  19. Delfina, 320
  20. Benjamín, 315
  21. Bautista, 312 (tie)
  22. Santiago, 312 (tie)
  23. Olivia, 310
  24. Joaquín, 259
  25. Zoe, 249
  26. Emily, 236 (tie)
  27. Paulina, 236 (tie)
  28. Francisco, 235
  29. Renata, 233
  30. Francesca, 227
  31. Bruno, 222 (tie)
  32. Luis, 222 (tie)
  33. Carlos, 220 (tie)
  34. Clara, 220 (tie)
  35. Facundo, 215
  36. Emiliano, 211
  37. Valentino, 209
  38. Ana, 208
  39. Mía, 203
  40. Valentina, 199
  41. Josefina, 194 (3-way tie)
  42. Juana, 194 (3-way tie)
  43. Maite, 194 (3-way tie)
  44. Agustina, 192 (tie)
  45. Tomás, 192 (tie)
  46. Luciano, 188
  47. Alfonsina, 186 (tie)
  48. Bastian, 186 (tie)
  49. Enzo, 184
  50. Dylan, 182
  51. Agustín, 180
  52. Nahitan, 175
  53. Jorge, 172
  54. Bianca, 170
  55. Valentín, 167
  56. Liam, 164
  57. Mia, 161
  58. José, 160
  59. Renzo, 159
  60. Franco, 155 (tie)
  61. Manuel, 155 (tie)
  62. Benicio, 154
  63. Ian, 152
  64. Ignacio, 150
  65. Camila, 149
  66. Victoria, 148
  67. Diego, 143
  68. Oriana, 142
  69. Pedro, 140
  70. Milagros, 137
  71. Alma, 131 (tie)
  72. Pilar, 131 (tie)
  73. Camilo, 129 (3-way tie)
  74. Guillermo, 129 (3-way tie)
  75. Vicente, 129 (3-way tie)
  76. Noah, 128
  77. Ciro, 127 (tie)
  78. Julia, 127 (tie)
  79. Salvador, 126
  80. Alfonso, 125
  81. Ramiro, 124
  82. Daniel, 120
  83. Máximo, 117
  84. Faustino, 115
  85. Jose, 114
  86. Samuel, 113
  87. Faustina, 111
  88. Alejandro, 110
  89. Federico, 109
  90. Genaro, 107
  91. Maia, 106 (tie)
  92. Pablo, 106 (tie)
  93. Lara, 105
  94. Sofia, 103
  95. Guillermina, 102
  96. Ámbar, 100
  97. Eduardo, 99
  98. Lucía, 98
  99. Federica, 96 (tie)
  100. Tadeo, 96 (tie)
  101. Theo (95)
  102. Luciana, 94 (tie)
  103. Sara, 94 (tie)
  104. Tiziano, 92
  105. Alexander, 91 (tie)
  106. Rafael, 91 (tie)
  107. Julián, 90 (3-way tie)
  108. Luana, 90 (3-way tie)
  109. Nicolás, 90 (3-way tie)
  110. Benjamin, 88
  111. Aitana, 86 (3-way tie)
  112. Bruna, 86 (3-way tie)
  113. Leonardo, 86 (3-way tie)
  114. Florencia, 85
  115. Rodrigo, 84
  116. David, 83 (4-way tie)
  117. Gael, 83 (4-way tie)
  118. Joaquina, 83 (4-way tie)
  119. Matías, 83 (4-way tie)
  120. Miguel, 80
  121. Gabriel, 79 (tie)
  122. Jazmín, 79 (tie)
  123. Alex, 78 (tie)
  124. Axel, 78 (tie)

(I went down far enough to ensure that at least fifty girl names were included…and then a little farther, because that 2-way tie between the 4-letter anagram names Alex and Axel is kind of adorable. :)

I’ve never looked at rankings for Uruguay before, so I don’t have past rankings to compare these to. But here are a few of the names from lower down on the list:

  • 35 babies were named Celeste, which is the nickname (El Celeste, “the sky-blue”) of Uruguay’s national soccer team.
  • 11 were named Edinson, which is the first name of Uruguayan soccer player Edinson Cavani.
  • 8 were named Nairobi, which is a female character from the popular Spanish-language TV series La casa de papel (English title: Money Heist).
  • 2 were named Tabaré, which was the first name of Uruguayan president Tabaré Vázquez (who both left office and passed away in 2020).
    • The name comes from Uruguayan literature: The main character of the epic poem Tabaré (1888) by Juan Zorrilla de San Martín is an indigenous Charrúa man named Tabaré.

Finally, because Uruguay releases all of its baby name data, we can check out the unique names at the other end of the spectrum as well. Here’s a selection Uruguay’s single-use baby names of 2020:

Atahualpa, Brislady, Crisbely, Duckenson, Elubina, Fritznel, Garibaldi, Hartmut, Izpabelli, Juanfer, Khantuta, Leovisnel, Missber, Norquides, Olgalisy, Pierangely, Quinto, Roismerl, Szabolcs, Tonatiuh, Tonantzín, Urumana, Viorky, Wanderson, Xilianny, Yusnavi, Zolanch

Some possible explanations/associations:

  • Atahualpa – the last emperor of the Inca
  • Garibaldi – 19th-century Italian revolutionary Giuseppe Garibaldi
  • Pierangely – Italian actress Pier Angeli
  • Tonatiuh – Nahua (Aztec) sun deity
  • Tonantzín – Nahuatl honorific title meaning “our mother”

Sources:

Image: Adapted from Flag of Uruguay (public domain)

[Latest update: Jul. 2023]

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

Flag of Quebec
Flag of Quebec

According to Retraite Québec, the most popular baby names in the Canadian province of Quebec last year were Emma and Noah.

Here are Quebec’s top 50 girl names and top 50 boy names of 2021:

Girl Names

  1. Emma, 521 baby girls
  2. Olivia, 519
  3. Alice, 508
  4. Florence, 498
  5. Charlie, 488
  6. Livia, 473
  7. Charlotte, 465
  8. Lea, 462
  9. Romy, 357
  10. Zoe, 344
  11. Clara, 335
  12. Juliette, 331
  13. Rosalie, 327
  14. Beatrice, 326
  15. Rose, 322
  16. Chloe, 314
  17. Eva, 312 (tie)
  18. Sofia, 312 (tie)
  19. Mia, 290
  20. Mila, 283
  21. Victoria, 253
  22. Jade, 249
  23. Julia, 245
  24. Leonie, 230
  25. Maeva, 221 (tie)
  26. Raphaelle, 221 (tie)
  27. Jeanne, 200
  28. Camille, 194
  29. Amelia, 193
  30. Flavie, 187
  31. Ophelie, 179
  32. Elizabeth, 177
  33. Elena, 176
  34. Adele, 164 (tie)
  35. Eleonore, 164 (tie)
  36. Sophia, 157
  37. Jasmine, 145
  38. Laurence, 144 (tie)
  39. Lexie, 144 (tie)
  40. Alicia, 143
  41. Lily, 139
  42. Oceane, 137
  43. Ellie, 136
  44. Sarah, 129
  45. Anna, 125 (3-way tie)
  46. Flora, 125 (3-way tie)
  47. Simone, 125 (3-way tie)
  48. Noelie, 124 (tie)
  49. Sophie, 124 (tie)
  50. Maelie, 123

Boy Names

  1. Noah, 717 baby boys
  2. William, 709
  3. Thomas, 645
  4. Leo, 622
  5. Liam, 618
  6. Jacob, 529
  7. Nathan, 519
  8. Arthur, 508
  9. Edouard, 499
  10. Felix, 484
  11. Logan, 476
  12. Emile, 465 (tie)
  13. Louis, 465 (tie)
  14. Charles, 408
  15. Raphael, 396
  16. James, 366
  17. Arnaud, 362 (tie)
  18. Theo, 362 (tie)
  19. Victor, 360
  20. Adam, 337
  21. Elliot, 332
  22. Alexis, 329
  23. Henri, 308
  24. Jules, 306
  25. Benjamin, 301
  26. Samuel, 290
  27. Gabriel, 289
  28. Milan, 282 (tie)
  29. Olivier, 282 (tie)
  30. Laurent, 280
  31. Theodore, 277
  32. Nolan, 274
  33. Jackson, 271
  34. Jayden, 266
  35. Lucas, 256
  36. Antoine, 245
  37. Zack, 239
  38. Eloi, 230 (tie)
  39. Ethan, 230 (tie)
  40. Matheo, 212
  41. Axel, 204
  42. Jake, 203
  43. Eli, 198
  44. Mathis, 191
  45. Hubert, 190
  46. Xavier, 177
  47. Zachary, 176
  48. Leonard, 171
  49. Loic, 170
  50. Mayson, 166

In the girls’ top 10, Zoe replaced Clara.

In the boys’ top 10, Felix replaced Logan.

And here are some of the baby names that were bestowed just once in Quebec last year:

Unique Girl NamesUnique Boy Names
Auxane, Beaulieu, Celtina, Dulcinee, Ephelina, Freticia, Gamaelle, Hestia, Isalie, Jophina, Kautjaq, Lasiala, Milaloup, Nausicaa, Oncy, Protea, Qulliq, Riziki, Sensitiva, Timmiak, Uzia, Violaine, Waapikun, Xeia, Yzea, ZoonaAmenzo, Blinken, Clydirk, Dawensky, Eliodore, Fritzner, Ghiss, Hulkson, Ikuagasak, Jackary, Kaulder, Lafleche, Mclovin, Nickford, Otsoa, Piponik, Qianli, Raynloc, Stratos, Trupt, Ulys, Vinicius, Wendrick, Xakhan, Yamsongo, Zoric

Some possible explanations/associations for a few of the above:

  • Beaulieu means “beautiful place” in French.
  • Kaulder was a character in the movie The Last Witch Hunter (2015).
  • McLovin was a name used on a fake ID in the movie Superbad (2007).
  • Milaloup looks like a combination of the name Mila and the French word loup, meaning “wolf.”
  • Nausicaa was a character in Homer’s Odyssey.
  • Qulliq refers to a seal-oil/whale blubber lamp used by the Inuit.
  • Timmiak refers to a duck or a goose in Inuktitut.

In 2020, the top names in Quebec were Olivia and Liam.

Sources: List of Baby Names – Retraite Québec, Noah and Emma most popular baby names in Quebec in 2021

Image: Adapted from Flag of Quebec (public domain)

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)

Popular baby names in Chile, 2021

Flag of Chile
Flag of Chile

According to data from Chile’s Servicio de Registro Civil e Identificación, the most popular baby names in the country last year were Sofia and Mateo.

Here are Chile’s top 10 girl names and top 10 boy names of 2021:

Girl Names

  1. Sofía, 2,401 baby girls
  2. Emma, 2,352
  3. Isabella, 2,156
  4. Emilia, 2,047
  5. Mia, 1,923
  6. Agustina, 1,820
  7. Julieta, 1,723
  8. Trinidad, 1,722
  9. Isidora, 1,698
  10. Josefa, 1,687

Boy Names

  1. Mateo, 3,272 baby boys
  2. Lucás, 2,057
  3. Agustín, 2,055
  4. Benjamín, 2,030
  5. Santiago, 1,809
  6. Gaspar, 1,759
  7. Tomás, 1,645
  8. Maximiliano, 1,533
  9. Vicente, 1,485
  10. Matías, 1,405

In the girls’ top 10, Julieta replaced Florencia.

In the boys’ top 10, Maximiliano replaced Joaquín.

Also popular is the interesting name Facundo, which has ranked inside the top 20 for the last few years.

The indigenous Mapuche people make up about 12% of the Chilean population, so Chile’s rankings included a number of Mapuche names, such as…

NameMeaning in MapucheUsage
LautaroHispanicized form of Leftraru (see below)219 boys (rank: 85th)
Rayen“flower”173 girls (91st)
Millaray“gold” + flower”157 girls (105th)
NahuelHispanicized form of Nawel (see below)137 girls (115th)
Eluneybased on elun, meaning “to give”89 girls (135th), 66 boys (180th)
TahielHispanicized form of tayül, meaning “sacred song”83 boys (154th), 1 girl
Ayelenbased on ayelen, “laughing,” ayliñ, “clear,” or aylen, “ember”63 girls (182nd)
Antu“sun” (the sun god in Mapuche mythology)38 boys, 15 girls
AukánHispanicized form of Awkan (see below)29 boys
Nawel“jaguar”24 boys
Ayün“love”15 boys, 6 girls
Newen“force”15 boys
Leftraru“swift raptor (crested caracara)”8 boys
Aliwen“tree”5 boys, 4 girls
Relmu“rainbow”4 girls, 2 boys
Likan“stone”5 boys, 1 girl
LihuenHispanicized form of Liwen (see below)4 girls, 1 boy
Awkan“rebellion, war”4 boys
Mankeform of mañke, meaning “condor”4 boys
Kallfuform of kallfü, meaning “blue”4 girls
Liwen“morning”3 girls, 1 boy
Küyen“moon” (the moon god in Mapuche mythology)3 girls
Milla“gold”2 girls
Quimey“beauty”2 boys
Kallfüray“blue” + “flower”1 girl
Lafken“sea, ocean”1 boy
Lihue“life”1 boy
Likanrayen“stone” + “flower”1 girl
Llampüdkenform of llampüdkeñ, meaning “butterfly”1 girl
Millalikan“gold” + “stone”1 boy
Millantú“gold”+ “sun”1 girl
Millarelmu“gold” + rainbow”1 girl
Pangui“mountain lion”1 boy

I also noticed a lot of names with similar elements (mainly toward the bottom of the rankings). Some of the repeated elements that caught my attention were…

  • Wid-
    • e.g., Widencia (f), Widmayer (m), Widnaido (m), Widnalem (f), Widnelson (m)
  • Wil-
    • Wilbenson (m), Wilchinia (f), Wilciano (m), Wilferman (m), Wilyana (f)
  • Wood-
    • Woodentz (m), Woodgina (f), Woodison (m), Woodjeny (f), Woodmerry (m)
  • -(s)ley
    • Dawensley (m), Frantzley (m), Jamesley (m), Phidensley (m), Roodensley (m)
  • -sky
    • Bervensky (m), Ferdensky (m), Lorvensky (m), Marvensky (m), Rodlensky (m)
  • -aïca/aica
    • Anaica (f), Ednaica (f), Janaïca (f), Onaïca (f), Phidnaïca (f), Schaïca (f)

Plus there were plenty of combinations thereof, like Widensley (m), Wildanaïka (f), and Woodjonsky (m).

Finally, here are some of the rare baby names that were bestowed just once in Chile last year:

Unique Girl NamesUnique Boy Names
Astroïcha, Auraluna, Berveline, Crismnia, Dillexy, Duciél, Evadorie, Ferlandina, Freiberlyn, Gibernica, Hashlyn, Huskerly, Inanga, Ingibor, Jephterline, Judelca, Kenverlin, Kimpavita, Lindiana, Lircay, Mashely, Mipsy, Nilvia, Nuntai, Oromanga, Phedjine, Quisdelina, Rhominna, Ribencia, Siarel, Silfidalinda, Texeline, Thiamara, Unay, Viozelin, Wisberline, Wismia, Xi, Yohanella, ZabinaAubincliff, Aztron, Bivenson, Chedelin, Daftan, Denberth, Everzon, Flandy, Fraynell, Genghini, Holiver, Hvitserk, Idvian, Iphadson, Jeymack, Jorvenqui, Kessnerl, Kontiki, Lebis, Leevoydwens, Mamlaka, Malkocoglu, Naylorby, Nilton, Olifirt, Phibens, Quedlin, Rodnord, Royber, Sphendy, Samadhi, Taypi, Tervenson, Unax, Vamsi, Wissander, Worlph, Xing, Yandidier, Zarueth

Kontiki is one of the names of the Inca creator deity Viracocha. (In the 1940s, it was used as the name of the Kon-Tiki expedition across the Pacific.)

Malkocoglu was likely picked up from a character in the Turkish TV series Muhtesem Yuzyil, which has become particularly popular in Chile (as El Sultán).

Sources:

Image: Adapted from Flag of Chile (public domain)