Baby Name: Lucas

Last year, the Canadian province of Alberta welcomed 49,030 babies — 25,160 boys and 23,870 girls.

What were the most popular names among these 2020 babies? Olivia and Noah.

Here are the top-10 lists by gender:

Girl Names

1. Olivia, 236 baby girls
2. Emma, 184
3. Charlotte, 161
4. Ava, 159
5. Sophia, 151
6. Amelia, 145
7. Isla, 133
8. Emily, 127
9. Lily, 123
10. Abigail, 114

Boy Names

1. Noah, 239 baby boys
2. Oliver, 229
3. Liam, 206
4. Benjamin, 182
5. William, 178
6. Jack, 169
7. Lucas, 163
8. Theodore, 159
9. Levi, 153
10. Owen, 152

In the girls’ top 10, Isla and Lily replaced Hannah and Elizabeth. In fact, Lily jumped all the way from 24th (in 2019) to 9th (in 2020).

In the boys’ top 10, Theodore and Levi replaced Ethan and Jacob. Levi, like Lily, saw a big jump from 27th (in 2019) to 9th (in 2020).

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

Here are some explanations and/or potential influences for a few of the above:

• Pkachhouk, or pka chhouk, means “lotus” in Khmer (Cambodian). Pka by itself is the word for “flower.”
• Wapikwanew means “flower” in Cree.
• Kikisepaw-Kihiw — kikisepaw means “morning, dawn” and kihiw means “eagle” in Cree.
• Kjerrand is a Norwegian name ultimately derived from a Germanic name made up of elements meaning “army” and “rim, edge (of a shield).”
• Lelouch Lamperouge is an anime character.
• Sîktogeja means “wolf” in Nakoda.
• Taiga could refer to the coniferous forest of the subarctic, or to the English word “tiger.”
• Valois (pronounced val-wa) was both a historical region and a historical royal house of France.

Finally, here are the 2019 rankings for Alberta, if you’d like to compare.

Sources: Alberta’s Top Baby Names (PDFs: Girl Names, Boy Names), Olivia and Noah most popular baby names in 2020, Online Cree Dictionary, Nordic Names

Image: Adapted from Flag of Alberta (public domain)