How popular is the baby name Maria 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 Maria.

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Popularity of the baby name Maria


Posts that mention the name Maria

Popular baby names in Switzerland, 2023

Flag of Switzerland
Flag of Switzerland

Last year, the European country of Switzerland welcomed 80,024 babies.

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

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

Girl names

  1. Mia, 380 baby girls
  2. Emma, 376
  3. Sofia, 358
  4. Emilia, 313
  5. Elena, 286
  6. Lia, 260 (tie)
  7. Olivia, 260 (tie)
  8. Lina, 259
  9. Nora, 240
  10. Mila, 239
  11. Ella, 208
  12. Lara, 207
  13. Lena, 202
  14. Luna, 200
  15. Lea, 196
  16. Malea, 194
  17. Anna, 192
  18. Alice, 191 (3-way tie)
  19. Sophia, 191 (3-way tie)
  20. Valentina, 191 (3-way tie)
  21. Yara, 188
  22. Elina, 183
  23. Nina, 182
  24. Alina, 181
  25. Leonie, 178
  26. Aurora, 176
  27. Giulia, 172
  28. Chiara, 170
  29. Eva, 164
  30. Elin, 162 (3-way tie)
  31. Julia, 162 (3-way tie)
  32. Laura, 162 (3-way tie)
  33. Amelia, 156 (tie)
  34. Emily, 156 (tie)
  35. Livia, 155
  36. Luana, 154
  37. Sophie, 147
  38. Alma, 145
  39. Maria, 133
  40. Elisa, 131
  41. Juna, 130
  42. Sara, 126
  43. Yuna, 125
  44. Zoé, 124
  45. Dua, 120
  46. Ayla, 118 (tie)
  47. Clara, 118 (tie)
  48. Malia, 117 (tie)
  49. Mara, 117 (tie)
  50. Inaya, 114 (4-way tie)
  51. Jana, 114 (4-way tie)
  52. Lou, 114 (4-way tie)
  53. Victoria, 114 (4-way tie)

Boy names

  1. Noah, 495 baby boys
  2. Liam, 442
  3. Matteo, 362
  4. Gabriel, 284
  5. Leano, 282
  6. Leo, 273
  7. Luca, 271
  8. Leon, 255
  9. Elias, 246
  10. Lio, 245
  11. Louis, 241
  12. Nino, 201
  13. Leonardo, 196
  14. Aaron, 193
  15. Ben, 189
  16. Elio, 187
  17. Elia, 186
  18. Theo, 182
  19. Luan, 180 (tie)
  20. Samuel, 180 (tie)
  21. David, 173 (tie)
  22. Levi, 173 (tie)
  23. Livio, 172
  24. Malik, 168
  25. Mateo, 166
  26. Nico, 161
  27. Arthur, 160
  28. Adam, 158 (tie)
  29. Lian, 158 (tie)
  30. Leandro, 157
  31. Diego, 155
  32. Julian, 151
  33. Finn, 150 (tie)
  34. Mattia, 150 (tie)
  35. Noé, 146
  36. Emil, 143 (tie)
  37. Enea, 143 (tie)
  38. Nael, 141
  39. Mael, 140
  40. Levin, 138
  41. Oliver, 137
  42. Milo, 133
  43. Kian, 132
  44. Rayan, 131
  45. Enzo, 130
  46. Daniel, 129 (tie)
  47. Robin, 129 (tie)
  48. Emilio, 126 (tie)
  49. Lino, 126 (tie)
  50. Lucas, 124

The girls’ top 100 included Lynn (65th), Amira (76th), Kiara (89th), and Aurelia (94th).

The boys’ top 100 included Laurin (58th), Nevio (72nd), Andrin (88th), and Nils (93rd).

Switzerland has four national languages: German, French, Italian, and Romansh. Here are the top baby names among the speakers of each of these languages:

Girl namesBoy names
German speakers
(62.3% of the population)
1. Mia, 289
2. Emilia, 287
3. Sofia, 249
1. Noah, 323
2. Matteo, 282
3. Liam, 279
French speakers
(22.8% of pop.)
1. Emma, 125
2. Olivia, 103
3. Alice, 94
1. Noah, 143
2. Gabriel, 140
3. Liam, 139
Italian speakers
(8.0% of pop.)
1. Emma, 25
2. Aurora, 24
3. Ginevra/Sofia, 21 each
1. Leonardo, 38
2. Noah, 28
3. Enea, 26
Romansh speakers
(0.5% of pop.)
1. Amalia/Gianna/Hannah, 2 each1. Mauro, 4
2. Luca/Nino, 3 each

And here’s a selection of uncommon names that were given to just two babies each in Switzerland in 2023:

Rare girl names Rare boy names
Aulona, Binja, Colombe, Dorela, Elsi, Flutra, Geraldine, Helbest, Ikonija, Joanna, Katia, Lorenza, Monika, Nephele, Orlane, Palmyre, Rivka, Sira, Théodora, Ursina, Vinia, Winnie, Yma, ZerinAlerio, Brusk, Clovis, Décio, Elimelech, Fiete, Glen, Hanno, Ishan, Jigdel, Kenneth, Lulzim, Matty, Nordhen, Ousmane, Pieter, Rolf, Sherwin, Tristán, Urs, Vinzent, Waylon, Yonah, Zayon

Helbest is a Kurdish word meaning “poem,” while Lulzim is based on an Albanian verb meaning “to bloom,” “to flourish.”

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

Sources: First names of newborns – Federal Statistical Office, Languages of Switzerland – Wikipedia, Wiktionary

Image: Adapted from Flag of Switzerland (public domain)

Minnesota family with 22 children

kinderfest

In the mid-20th century, Alvin Joseph Miller and Lucille Rose Miller (née Kahnke) of Waseca, Minnesota, had 22 children — 15 girls and 7 boys.

Here are the names of all 22 siblings:

  1. Ramona Mary (born in 1940), who became a Franciscan nun
  2. Alvin Joseph, Jr. (b. 1942)
  3. Rose Ann (b. 1943)
  4. Kathleen Edith (b. 1945)
  5. Robert Vincent (b. 1946)
  6. Patricia Jean (b. 1947)
  7. Mary Lucille (b. 1948), nicknamed “Marylu”
  8. Diane Margaret (b. 1949)
  9. John Charles (b. 1950)
  10. Janet Irene (b. 1951)
  11. Linda Louise (b. 1953)
  12. Virginia Therese (b. 1954)
  13. Helen Rita (b. 1955), who wrote a book about growing up in a large family
  14. Arthur Lawrence (b. 1956)
  15. Dolores Maria (b. 1957)
  16. Martin Peter (b. 1959)
  17. Pauline Carmel (b. 1960)
  18. Alice Callista (b. 1961)
  19. Angela Mary (b. 1962)
  20. Marcia Marie (b. 1963)
  21. Gregory Eugene (b. 1964)
  22. Damien Francis (b. 1966)

Eight of the children had been born by April of 1950, when the Miller family was interviewed for the U.S. Census:

The Miller family on the 1950 U.S. Census
The Miller family (1950 U.S. Census)

Alvin and Lucille raised their children on a 300-acre farm that included a seven-bedroom farmhouse. Here’s how Diane (#8) described her childhood:

I remember a lot of rides in the wheelbarrow from the granary to the barn. I remember a lot of grinding feed, a lot of egg washing and packing, a lot of sitting by the wood stove in the basement, singing songs as we candled eggs.

Which of the names above do you like most?

P.S. Thank you to Destiny for letting me know about the Miller family a few months ago! (Destiny also told me about the Jones family of West Virginia.)

Sources:

Image: Ein Kinderfest (1868) by Ludwig Knaus

Popular and unique baby names in Zurich, 2023

Flag of Switzerland
Flag of Switzerland

Last year, the Swiss city of Zurich welcomed 4,475 babies — 2,202 girls and 2,273 boys.

What were the most popular names among these babies? Sofia and Leo.

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

Girl names

  1. Sofia, 26 baby girls
  2. Olivia, 21
  3. Ella, 20
  4. Emma, 17 (tie)
  5. Mila, 17 (tie)
  6. Sophia, 16
  7. Elena, 15 (tie)
  8. Mia, 15 (tie)
  9. Lea, 14 (tie)
  10. Lia, 14 (tie)
  11. Clara, 13 (3-way tie)
  12. Emilia, 13 (3-way tie)
  13. Leonie, 13 (3-way tie)
  14. Hanna, 12 (6-way tie)
  15. Lou, 12 (6-way tie)
  16. Nina, 12 (6-way tie)
  17. Nora, 12 (6-way tie)
  18. Sophie, 12 (6-way tie)
  19. Valentina, 12 (6-way tie)
  20. Ida, 11
  21. Anna, 10 (6-way tie)
  22. Emily, 10 (6-way tie)
  23. Lara, 10 (6-way tie)
  24. Laura, 10 (6-way tie)
  25. Lina, 10 (6-way tie)
  26. Zoe, 10 (6-way tie)
  27. Amélie, 9 (8-way tie)
  28. Ava, 9 (8-way tie)
  29. Malea, 9 (8-way tie)
  30. Maria, 9 (8-way tie)
  31. Maya, 9 (8-way tie)
  32. Mira, 9 (8-way tie)
  33. Romy, 9 (8-way tie)
  34. Yuna, 9 (8-way tie)
  35. Alice, 8 (9-way tie)
  36. Elea, 8 (9-way tie)
  37. Isabella, 8 (9-way tie)
  38. Lily, 8 (9-way tie)
  39. Louise, 8 (9-way tie)
  40. Luana, 8 (9-way tie)
  41. Luna, 8 (9-way tie)
  42. Sara, 8 (9-way tie)
  43. Zoé, 8 (9-way tie)
  44. Ada, 7 (12-way tie)
  45. Alma, 7 (12-way tie)
  46. Carla, 7 (12-way tie)
  47. Eliana, 7 (12-way tie)
  48. Elin, 7 (12-way tie)
  49. Elina, 7 (12-way tie)
  50. Giulia, 7 (12-way tie)
  51. Isabel, 7 (12-way tie)
  52. Julia, 7 (12-way tie)
  53. Mara, 7 (12-way tie)
  54. Paula, 7 (12-way tie)
  55. Stella, 7 (12-way tie)

Boy names

  1. Leo, 28 baby boys
  2. Louis, 19
  3. Emil, 16 (3-way tie)
  4. Leonardo, 16 (3-way tie)
  5. Theo, 16 (3-way tie)
  6. Gabriel, 15
  7. Leon, 14
  8. Julian, 13 (7-way tie)
  9. Luca, 13 (7-way tie)
  10. Luka, 13 (7-way tie)
  11. Matteo, 13 (7-way tie)
  12. Max, 13 (7-way tie)
  13. Noah, 13 (7-way tie)
  14. Oliver, 13 (7-way tie)
  15. Alexander, 12 (6-way tie)
  16. Daniel, 12 (6-way tie)
  17. Felix, 12 (6-way tie)
  18. Jakob, 12 (6-way tie)
  19. Levi, 12 (6-way tie)
  20. Nicolas, 12 (6-way tie)
  21. Arthur, 11 (3-way tie)
  22. Henry, 11 (3-way tie)
  23. Maximilian, 11 (3-way tie)
  24. Elio, 10 (4-way tie)
  25. Mael, 10 (4-way tie)
  26. Milo, 10 (4-way tie)
  27. Vincent, 10 (4-way tie)
  28. Benjamin, 9 (8-way tie)
  29. Elia, 9 (8-way tie)
  30. Kian, 9 (8-way tie)
  31. Laurin, 9 (8-way tie)
  32. Leano, 9 (8-way tie)
  33. Malik, 9 (8-way tie)
  34. Noé, 9 (8-way tie)
  35. Oskar, 9 (8-way tie)
  36. Aaron, 8 (11-way tie)
  37. Anton, 8 (11-way tie)
  38. David, 8 (11-way tie)
  39. Diego, 8 (11-way tie)
  40. Elias, 8 (11-way tie)
  41. Luan, 8 (11-way tie)
  42. Mateo, 8 (11-way tie)
  43. Oscar, 8 (11-way tie)
  44. Paul, 8 (11-way tie)
  45. Samuel, 8 (11-way tie)
  46. Valentin, 8 (11-way tie)
  47. Adam, 7 (11-way tie)
  48. Adrian, 7 (11-way tie)
  49. Dario, 7 (11-way tie)
  50. Emilio, 7 (11-way tie)
  51. Henri, 7 (11-way tie)
  52. Hugo, 7 (11-way tie)
  53. Jonathan, 7 (11-way tie)
  54. Karl, 7 (11-way tie)
  55. Liam, 7 (11-way tie)
  56. Mattia 7 (11-way tie)
  57. Vito, 7 (11-way tie)

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 Zurich last year:

Unique girl namesUnique boy names
Audelia, Barla, Colombine, Dora, Emmeline, Franka, Georgia, Hera, Inga, Janna, Karlotta, Lielle, Malva, Nele, Ornella, Pelin, Ronela, Soline, Thekla, Urmi, Viktoria, Wanda, Xiomara, Yuliana, ZoriAlain, Benedikt, Corsin, Duri, Egon, Fiete, Golden, Hendrik, Ilya, Jannik, Klaus, Lars, Markus, Nayan, Ognjen, Piem, Rentaro, Simeon, Taavi, Ulysse, Vidan, Wilhelm, Xhonson, Yaris, Ziko

Barla and Corsin are both Romansh names, interestingly.

I didn’t post about Zurich’s top baby names of 2022, but here are Zurich’s 2021 rankings, as well as Switzerland’s 2022 rankings.

Sources: Vornamen in der Stadt Zürich – Stadt Zürich, Stadt Zürich 2023: Zunahme der Bevölkerungszahl, Rückgang der Geburten, Behind the Name

Image: Adapted from Flag of Switzerland (public domain)

Girl names that end with an L-sound

Girl names that end with an L-sound

In the U.S., most of the names given to baby girls end with a vowel sound. And many of the remaining names end with an N-sound.

So, what about girl names that end with other sounds?

Below is a selection of girl names that end with an L-sound, regardless of last letter. The names are ordered by current popularity.

Abigail
From the Hebrew name Avigayil, which is made up of elements meaning “father” and “joy.” Here’s the popularity graph for Abigail.

Hazel
From the type of tree, or from the color (which is the hue of a ripe hazelnut). Here’s the popularity graph for Hazel.

Brielle
A short form of the French name Gabrielle. Here’s the popularity graph for Brielle.

Isabelle
Based on Elizabeth, which is derived from a Hebrew name made up of elements meaning “god” and “oath.” Here’s the popularity graph for Isabelle.

Noelle
A feminine form of the French name Noel, meaning “Christmas.” Here’s the popularity graph for Noelle.

Camille
A French feminine form of the Roman name Camillus, which is of unknown meaning. Here’s the popularity graph for Camille.

Ariel
A Hebrew name meaning “lion of god.” Here’s the popularity graph for Ariel.

Rachel
A Hebrew name meaning “ewe.” Here’s the popularity graph for Rachel.

Lucille
A French feminine form of the Roman name Lucius, meaning “light.” Here’s the popularity graph for Lucille.

Kendall
From the English surname, which is derived from the place name Kendal, meaning “Kent valley” (i.e., valley by the River Kent). Here’s the popularity graph for Kendall.

Mabel
A Medieval feminine form of the late Roman name Amabilis, meaning “lovable.” Here’s the popularity graph for Mabel.

Nicole
A French feminine form of Nicholas, which is derived from an Ancient Greek name made up of elements meaning “victory” and “people.” Here’s the popularity graph for Nicole.

Annabelle
A form of the Medieval feminine name Amabel (derived from the late Roman name Amabilis, meaning “lovable”), influenced by the name Anna and French word belle (meaning “beautiful”). Here’s the popularity graph for Annabelle.

Giselle
From a Germanic word meaning “hostage.” Here’s the popularity graph for Giselle.

Michelle
A French feminine form of Michael, which is derived from a Hebrew name meaning “who is like god?” Here’s the popularity graph for Michelle.

Elle
A diminutive of names that start with El-, or a short form of names that end with -elle. Here’s the popularity graph for Elle.

Miracle
From the English vocabulary word. Here’s the popularity graph for Miracle.

Danielle
A French feminine form of Daniel, which is derived from a Hebrew name meaning “god is my judge.” Here’s the popularity graph for Danielle.

Itzel
Might be based on the Mayan name Ixchel, which may mean “rainbow lady.” Here’s the popularity graph for Itzel.

Gabrielle
A French feminine form of Gabriel, which is derived from a Hebrew name meaning “man of god.” Here’s the popularity graph for Gabrielle.

Bristol
From the English place name, which means “bridge place.” Here’s the popularity graph for Bristol.

Angel
From an Ancient Greek word meaning “messenger.” Here’s the popularity graph for Angel.

Opal
From the type of gemstone. Here’s the popularity graph for Opal.

April
From the name of the month. Here’s the popularity graph for April.

Janelle
A diminutive of Jane. Here’s the popularity graph for Janelle.

Laurel
From the type of tree. Here’s the popularity graph for Laurel.

Estelle
An Old French name meaning “star.” Here’s the popularity graph for Estelle.

Pearl
From the type of gemstone (which is actually a nacreous concretion produced by mollusks). Here’s the popularity graph for Pearl.

Joelle
A feminine form of Joel, which is derived from a Hebrew name meaning “Yahweh is god.” Here’s the popularity graph for Joelle.

Adele
From a Germanic word meaning “noble.” Here’s the popularity graph for Adele.

Marisol
A short form of the Spanish name María Soledad (from the Marian title María de la Soledad). Here’s the popularity graph for Marisol.

Sol
A Spanish and Portuguese word meaning “sun.” Here’s the popularity graph for Sol.

Royal
From the English vocabulary word. Here’s the popularity graph for Royal.

Aubrielle
An elaboration of Aubrey. Here’s the popularity graph for Aubrielle.

Chanel
From the French fashion house Chanel, named for founder Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel. Here’s the popularity graph for Chanel.

Belle
A short form of names that end with -belle. Here’s the popularity graph for Belle.

Raquel
The Spanish and Portuguese form of Rachel. Here’s the popularity graph for Raquel.

Crystal
From the English vocabulary word. Here’s the popularity graph for Crystal.

Jewel
From the English vocabulary word. Here’s the popularity graph for Jewel.

Abril
The Spanish form of the name April. Here’s the popularity graph for Abril.

Amal
An Arabic word meaning “hope.” Here’s the popularity graph for Amal.

Campbell
From the Scottish surname, which is derived from a nickname made up of elements meaning “crooked” and “mouth.” Here’s the popularity graph for Campbell.

Azul
The Spanish word for “blue.” Here’s the popularity graph for Azul.

Maple
From the type of tree. Here’s the popularity graph for Maple.

Xochitl
The Nahuatl word for “flower.” Here’s the popularity graph for Xochitl.

Maribel
A short form of the Spanish name María Isabel. Here’s the popularity graph for Maribel.

Yael
From a Hebrew name meaning “ibex” (a type of wild goat). Here’s the popularity graph for Yael.

Mirabel
From the Old French word mirable, meaning “admirable.” Here’s the popularity graph for Mirabel.

Sybil
From the Ancient Greek word sibylla, which referred to a type of prophetess. Here’s the popularity graph for Sybil.

Nell
A Medieval diminutive of names that start with El- or a similar sound. Here’s the popularity graph for Nell.


Less-common girl names that end with an L-sound include Coral, Liesl, Jill, Eshaal, Marvel, Ciel, Layal, and Kestrel.

Which of the above do you like most? What others can you think of?

P.S. Here are lists of girl names that end with D-, K-, M-, R-, S-, T-, V-, and Z-sounds.

Sources:

  • SSA
  • Wikipedia
  • Wiktionary
  • Behind the Name
  • Hanks, Patrick, Kate Hardcastle and Flavia Hodges. (Eds.) A Dictionary of First Names. New York: Oxford University Press, 2006.