The most popular baby names in England and Wales were announced last week.
According to the Office for National Statistics, the region’s top names were Harry for boys and Amelia for girls.
Here are the top 20 girl names and top 20 boy names of 2012:
| Top Girl Names | Top Boy Names |
|---|---|
| 1. Amelia 2. Olivia 3. Jessica 4. Emily 5. Lily 6. Ava 7. Mia 8. Isla 9. Sophie 10. Isabella 11. Evie 12. Ruby 13. Poppy 14. Grace 15. Sophia 16. Chloe 17. Isabelle 18. Ella 19. Freya 20. Charlotte | 1. Harry 2. Oliver 3. Jack 4. Charlie 5. Jacob 6. Thomas 7. Alfie 8. Riley 9. William 10. James 11. Joshua 12. George 13. Ethan 14. Noah 15. Samuel 16. Daniel 17. Oscar 18. Max 19. Muhammad 20. Leo |
The England-only top 20 included all of the above except for Archie (not Leo) on the boys’ side.
The Wales-only top 20 included Dylan, Mason, Logan, Tyler and Isaac (not Samuel, Daniel, Oscar, Max or Muhammad) for boys and Seren, Megan, Ffion and Layla (not Isla, Chloe, Freya or Charlotte) for girls.
Newbies to the England and Wales top 100 are…
- Hugo, Sonny, Seth, Elliott, Theodore, Rory and Ellis for boys. (Out are Joel, Hayden, John, Ashton, Jackson, Ben and Reece.)
- Mollie, Ivy, Darcey, Tilly, Sara and Violet for girls. (Out are Lexie, Lauren, Rebecca, Tia, Nicola and Kayla.)
Here’s a selection of names from the other end of the list (each given to 10 babies or fewer):
| Rare Girl Names | Rare Boy Names |
|---|---|
| Ambreen, Anest, Arrietty, Arzoo, Bowie, Charvi, Cressida, Csenge, Delyth, Devoiry, Eveie, Flourish, Gwenno, Liepa, Llio, Lliwen, Loveday, Mayameen, Mazvita, Migle, Makanaka, Ocean-Blu, Pip, Senuli, Strawberry, Testimony, Tiggy, Tulsi | Alieu, Atreyu, Bede, Betzalel, Boston, Cavalli, Celt, Cem, Connah, Croyde, Dacre, Exodus, His, Huckleberry, James-Dean, Jools, Jovi, Louix, MD., Messiah, Motty, Neyo, Nuh, Nuno, Papa, Peregrine, Platon, Reco, Rhome, Soul, Ting, Tirth, Ugnius, Wing, Winner |
Finally, here are some older posts with the 2011, 2010, 2009, and 2008 lists of most popular names in England & Wales.
Source: Baby Names, England and Wales, 2012 (ONS)
Image: Adapted from Flag of the United Kingdom (public domain)
