How popular is the baby name Michael 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 Michael.

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Popularity of the baby name Michael


Posts that mention the name Michael

Popular baby names in Ireland, 2022

Flag of Ireland
Flag of Ireland

The island of Ireland, located in the North Atlantic Ocean, happens to be the third-largest island in Europe (after Great Britain and Iceland).

Last year, the Republic of Ireland — which covers five-sixths of the island — welcomed over 57,000 babies.

What were the most popular names among these babies? Emily and Jack.

Here are Ireland’s top 50 girl names and top 50 boy names of 2022:

Girl Names

  1. Emily, 349 baby girls
  2. Grace, 342
  3. Fiadh, 320 – pronounced FEE-a
  4. Sophie, 292
  5. Lily, 291
  6. Éabha, 271 – pronounced EY-va
  7. Ava, 269
  8. Mia, 262
  9. Ellie, 259
  10. Olivia, 258
  11. Amelia, 250 (tie)
  12. Emma, 250 (tie)
  13. Hannah, 248
  14. Ella, 240
  15. Freya, 234
  16. Lucy, 232
  17. Isla, 228
  18. Saoirse, 212 – pronounced SEER-sha or SAYR-sha
  19. Millie, 206
  20. Sadie, 201
  21. Sophia, 200
  22. Molly, 195
  23. Chloe, 191
  24. Caoimhe, 190 – pronounced KEE-va or KWEE-va
  25. Anna, 186
  26. Evie, 181
  27. Isabelle, 178
  28. Robyn, 177
  29. Alice, 160
  30. Aoife, 158 – pronounced EE-fa
  31. Róisín, 157 – pronounced ROH-sheen
  32. Sadhbh, 153 – pronounced siev (rhymes with the number “five”).
  33. Cara, 152
  34. Katie, 151
  35. Erin, 150
  36. Kate, 147
  37. Willow, 145
  38. Croía, 140 (3-way tie) – pronounced KREE-a
  39. Ruby, 140 (3-way tie)
  40. Sofia, 140 (3-way tie)
  41. Bonnie, 135
  42. Holly, 129 (tie)
  43. Zoe, 129 (tie)
  44. Sienna, 126
  45. Isabella, 125 (tie)
  46. Maya, 125 (tie)
  47. Sarah, 121
  48. Ada, 119
  49. Rosie, 111
  50. Leah, 109

Boy Names

  1. Jack, 641 baby boys
  2. Noah, 485
  3. James, 412
  4. Rían, 372
  5. Charlie, 348
  6. Oisín, 340 – pronounced UH-sheen or OH-sheen
  7. Tadhg, 324 – pronounced tieg (like the first three letters of “tiger”)
  8. Liam, 323
  9. Cillian, 316 – pronounced KIL-ee-an
  10. Daniel, 303
  11. Fionn, 287
  12. Michael, 278
  13. Conor, 275
  14. Finn, 269
  15. Patrick, 250
  16. Thomas, 246
  17. Darragh, 245
  18. Harry, 242
  19. Seán, 239
  20. Luke, 233
  21. Theo, 232
  22. Adam, 230
  23. Leo, 225
  24. Alex, 216
  25. Oliver, 201
  26. Ryan, 190
  27. Max, 189
  28. Cian, 185 – pronounced KEE-an or keen
  29. Tommy, 184
  30. Luca, 179
  31. Bobby, 170
  32. Mason, 167
  33. Dylan, 163 (3-way tie)
  34. Jamie, 163 (3-way tie)
  35. Kai, 163 (3-way tie)
  36. John, 160
  37. Ollie, 159
  38. Oscar, 156
  39. Shay, 152
  40. Alexander, 149 (tie)
  41. Ben, 149 (tie)
  42. Matthew, 146
  43. David, 143 (tie)
  44. Tom, 143 (tie)
  45. Ethan, 141
  46. Donnacha, 140 – pronounced DUN-uh-ka or DUN-uh-kha (the kh represents a guttural H-sound)
  47. Alfie, 139
  48. Jacob, 131
  49. Billy, 128
  50. Sam, 125

New to the girls’ top 100 were the names Hailey, Phoebe, Ayda, and Éala.

New to the boys’ top 100 were the names Blake and Cody.

The fastest-rising names in the top 100 in terms of numbers of babies were:

  • Millie (+58 baby girls), Olivia (+39), Éala (+32), Ellie (+31), Isabelle (+31)
  • Luca (+58 baby boys), Oisín (+38), Leo (+33), Kai (+33), Tomás (+30)

The fastest-rising names in terms of rank were:

  • Éala (+86 places), Phoebe (+45), Mary (+40), Hailey (+38), Ayda (+29)
  • Tomás (+42 places), Anthony (+31), Christopher (+29), Joey (+25), Kayden (+25)
Map of the four provinces of Ireland
Ireland’s four provinces

Home to more than five million people, the Republic of Ireland is divided into four provinces. (One of these provinces, Ulster, lies largely within Northern Ireland, which is part of the UK.) The top baby names within each of the four provinces last year were…

Top Girl NameTop Boy Name
Leinster
(56% of the population)		EmilyJack
Munster
(27% of pop.)		EmilyJack
Connacht
(11% of pop.)		ÉabhaJack
Ulster [ROI portion]
(6% of pop.)		GraceJack

And what about the names at the other end of the spectrum? The following were given to just 3 babies each in Ireland last year:

Rare Girl NamesRare Boy Names
Ananya, Beatriz, Cliona, Dina, Eilidh, Faela, Fianna, Isadora, Joan, Khadija, Líadh, Luisne, Miruna, Morrigan, Nala, Orlagh, Prunelle, Réiltín, Saffie, Scotia, Tilda, Vamika, ZohaAilbe, Brooklyn, Caoilte, Denzel, Eamonn, Féidhlim, Geoffrey, Henrik, Isa, Josiah, Kamal, Lúan, Manus, Nilan, Ógie, Pio, Rokas, Séadhna, Tiernán, Viraj, Wayne, Yousuf, Zoraiz

Finally, here are Ireland’s 2021 rankings, if you’d like to compare last year to the year before.

P.S. If you’re interested in seeing more Irish name pronunciations, just click that link.

Sources: Irish Babies’ Names – CSO (Irish Babies’ Names 2022), Births, Deaths and Marriages – CSO (Vital Statistics Yearly Summary 2022), Data – CSO, Provinces of Ireland – Wikipedia

Image: Adapted from Flag of Ireland (public domain)
Map: Adapted from Provinces of Ireland location map by Ssolbergj under CC BY-SA 4.0.

[Latest update: Feb. 2024]

Popular and unique baby names in Sonoma County (California), 2022

Flag of California
Flag of California

Sonoma County, located north of San Francisco, is part of California’s famous Wine Country region.

Last year, Sonoma welcomed 4,583 babies. What were the most popular names among these babies? Camila and Mateo.

Here are Sonoma’s top 50+ girl names and top 50+ boy names of 2022:

Girl Names

  1. Camila, 28 baby girls
  2. Emma, 25
  3. Sofia, 22
  4. Isabella, 21 (tie)
  5. Mia, 21 (tie)
  6. Amelia, 20
  7. Luna, 18
  8. Elizabeth, 17 (tie)
  9. Olivia, 17 (tie)
  10. Charlotte, 15 (tie)
  11. Penelope, 15 (tie)
  12. Maya, 14
  13. Evelyn, 13 (4-way tie)
  14. Gianna, 13 (4-way tie)
  15. Natalie, 13 (4-way tie)
  16. Riley, 13 (4-way tie)
  17. Ella, 12 (6-way tie)
  18. Emily, 12 (6-way tie)
  19. Nora, 12 (6-way tie)
  20. Ruby, 12 (6-way tie)
  21. Samantha, 12 (6-way tie)
  22. Sophia, 12 (6-way tie)
  23. Aria, 11 (4-way tie)
  24. Mila, 11 (4-way tie)
  25. Scarlett, 11 (4-way tie)
  26. Zoey, 11 (4-way tie)
  27. Catalina, 10 (5-way tie)
  28. Victoria, 10 (5-way tie)
  29. Violet, 10 (5-way tie)
  30. Ximena, 10 (5-way tie)
  31. ???, 10 (5-way tie)
    • The dataset included a blank entry with 10 babies. Perhaps the name was accidentally deleted, or this entry represents 10 Sonoma babies that have yet to be named…?
  32. Abigail, 9 (6-way tie)
  33. Audrey, 9 (6-way tie)
  34. Ava, 9 (6-way tie)
  35. Avery, 9 (6-way tie)
  36. Hazel, 9 (6-way tie)
  37. Lucia, 9 (6-way tie)
  38. Chloe, 8 (5-way tie)
  39. Layla, 8 (5-way tie)
  40. Natalia, 8 (5-way tie)
  41. Piper, 8 (5-way tie)
  42. Zoe, 8 (5-way tie)
  43. Aaliyah, 7 (17-way tie)
  44. Alina, 7 (17-way tie)
  45. Athena, 7 (17-way tie)
  46. Bella, 7 (17-way tie)
  47. Cora, 7 (17-way tie)
  48. Daisy, 7 (17-way tie)
  49. Eleanor, 7 (17-way tie)
  50. Eliana, 7 (17-way tie)
  51. Ellie, 7 (17-way tie)
  52. Genesis, 7 (17-way tie)
  53. Harper, 7 (17-way tie)
  54. Isla, 7 (17-way tie)
  55. June, 7 (17-way tie)
  56. Kira, 7 (17-way tie)
  57. Madison, 7 (17-way tie)
  58. Sadie, 7 (17-way tie)
  59. Willow, 7 (17-way tie)

Boy Names

  1. Mateo, 26 baby boys
  2. Liam, 24
  3. Henry, 20 (3-way tie)
  4. Hudson, 20 (3-way tie)
  5. Santiago, 20 (3-way tie)
  6. Noah, 19 (tie)
  7. Sebastian, 19 (tie)
  8. Oliver, 17
  9. Aiden, 16 (3-way tie)
  10. Daniel, 16 (3-way tie)
  11. Lucas, 16 (3-way tie)
  12. James, 15 (4-way tie)
  13. Levi, 15 (4-way tie)
  14. Theodore, 15 (4-way tie)
  15. Wyatt, 15 (4-way tie)
  16. Angel, 14 (4-way tie)
  17. Isaac, 14 (4-way tie)
  18. Jack, 14 (4-way tie)
  19. Jackson, 14 (4-way tie)
  20. Damian, 13 (7-way tie)
  21. Emiliano, 13 (7-way tie)
  22. Emilio, 13 (7-way tie)
  23. Ian, 13( 7-way tie)
  24. Juan, 13 (7-way tie)
  25. Julian, 13 (7-way tie)
  26. Luca, 13 (7-way tie)
  27. Adrian, 12 (8-way tie)
  28. Adriel, 12 (8-way tie)
  29. Jayden, 12 (8-way tie)
  30. Jose, 12 (8-way tie)
  31. Leo, 12 (8-way tie)
  32. Mason, 12 (8-way tie)
  33. Theo, 12 (8-way tie)
  34. William, 12 (8-way tie)
  35. Aaron, 11 (6-way tie)
  36. Anthony, 11 (6-way tie)
  37. Cameron, 11 (6-way tie)
  38. Logan, 11 (6-way tie)
  39. Michael, 11 (6-way tie)
  40. Roman, 11 (6-way tie)
  41. Christopher, 10 (6-way tie)
  42. Kai, 10 (6-way tie)
  43. Lorenzo, 10 (6-way tie)
  44. Miguel, 10 (6-way tie)
  45. Owen, 10 (6-way tie)
  46. Quinn, 10 (6-way tie)
  47. Axel, 9 (9-way tie)
  48. Caleb, 9 (9-way tie)
  49. Dominic, 9 (9-way tie)
  50. Ezekiel, 9 (9-way tie)
  51. Felix, 9 (9-way tie)
  52. Gabriel, 9 (9-way tie)
  53. Maverick, 9 (9-way tie)
  54. Rowan, 9 (9-way tie)
  55. Samuel, 9 (9-way tie)

Lower down on the list, we find 3 boys named Oslo and 2 named Kawika (the Hawaiian form of David).

And here’s a sampling of the many names that were bestowed just once in Sonoma last year:

Unique Girl NamesUnique Boy Names
Alofa, Baylor, Calgary, Dechen, Etsai, Fleury, Gabbanelli, Heather, Inayaat, Josiebelle, Ka Iulani, Liska, Morelia, Nasira, Oa, Pejuta, Quetzal, Riviera, Salanieta, Tenley, Unity, Vylana, Wendy, Yubicela, ZoaAimeson, Braulio, Coatney, Daizel, Ekansh, Filberto, Gadiel, Helios, Iroh, Javelin, Kaleo, Lars, Mayaken, Nikolai, Osoleo, Pedro, Quentin, Reverand, Sterling, Torrello, Ulices, Voyager, Wolfie, Yonik, Zayjoun

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

  • Alofa means “love” in Samoan.
  • Dechen means “great bliss” in Tibetan.
  • Etsai means “devil” in Basque.
  • Iroh is a character from the animated TV series Avatar: The Last Airbender.
  • Javelin originally referred to a light spear used in hunting, but today it’s more closely linked to either the Olympic sport or the missile used by the military.
  • Ka Iulani could be a reference to Hawaii’s last heir apparent, Princess Ka’iulani.
  • Kaleo means “the voice” or “the sound” in Hawaiian. (It’s also the name of an Icelandic rock band.)
  • Pejuta means “medicine” in Lakota.
  • Quetzal refers to the quetzal bird.

P.S. Just for fun, here are some of the names that have only popped up a single time in Sonoma’s baby name data, which goes back to the 1800s.

  • 2013: Ethereal, Meadowlark
  • 2012: Six
  • 2011: Four, Aubergine
  • 2009: Limber, Nightlynn, Pepperwood
  • 2008: Honeymoon, Teancum
  • 2006: Luminescence, Memphis Dreamwolf, Ozomatli, Skylarshine
    • Ozomatli is the Nahuatl word for “monkey.” (It’s also the name of a Grammy-winning Latin Rock band from Los Angeles.)
  • 2000: Ocean Wind, Millennium, Millennium Christopher
  • 1999: Chrysler
  • 1997: Return
  • 1996: Riverwind
  • 1995: Brazil, Cedar River, Talisman
  • 1994: Namibia, Northern
  • 1993: Tiffani Amber, Vancouver
  • 1992: Sunwater
  • 1991: Modesto, Sparkles
  • 1988: Smokey
  • 1985: Juror, Redcloud
  • 1984: Little Fawn
  • 1982: Otineb
    • Otineb is “Benito” spelled backwards
  • 1981: Connemara
  • 1976: Sonrisa
  • 1975: Little Star
  • 1974: Buffalo, Evenstar, Kipkino
  • 1973: Apricot, Coriander, Summertime
  • 1970: Starfinder
  • 1965: Honey Bee
  • 1958: Zebra
  • 1951: Starlite
  • 1937: Grape
    • I appreciate that a baby born in a wine-making region was named “Grape” :)
  • 1921: Senator
  • 1915: Sequestre
  • 1914: Eldorado

Sonoma’s two-hit wonder names include Strawberry (1971, 1973) and Fairlight (1974, 1976).

Sources: Sonoma County Baby Names | Open Data | Sonoma County, Sonoma County Births by Year | Open Data | Sonoma County, Wiktionary, Online Nahuatl Dictionary

Image: Adapted from Flag of California (public domain)

Popular baby names in Austin (Texas), 2008-2016

Flag of Texas
Flag of Texas

A couple of months ago, we looked at Austin’s top baby names of 2017. When I found the data for that post, I also found nine other top-10 lists for Austin (2008-2016). Because they’re out of date, I’ll go ahead and consolidate these earlier rankings into a single blog post (like I did for New York City a while back).

2016

The most popular baby names in Austin in 2016.

Top Girl Names (Austin, 2016)Top Boy Names (Austin, 2016)
1. Olivia
2. Mia
3. Isabella
4. Sophia
5. Elizabeth
6. Ava
7. Emma
8. Charlotte
9. Sofia
10. Camila & Emily (tie)		1. William
2. Alexander
3. Ethan
4. Noah
5. Oliver
6. Benjamin
7. Liam
8. Jacob
9. James
10. Mathew

(“Mathew” could be a typo…?)

2015

The most popular baby names in Austin in 2015.

Top Girl Names (Austin, 2015)Top Boy Names (Austin, 2015)
1. Olivia
2. Sophia
3. Emma
4. Sofia
5. Ava
6. Evelyn
7. Emily
8. Abigail
9. Isabella
10. Mia		1. Liam
2. Noah
3. William
4. James
5. Alexander
6. Jacob
7. Luke
8. David
9. Dylan
10. Henry

2014

The most popular baby names in Austin in 2014.

Top Girl Names (Austin, 2014)Top Boy Names (Austin, 2014)
1. Olivia
2. Emma
3. Isabella
4. Sofia
5. Mia
6. Sophia
7. Ava
8. Charlotte
9. Emily
10. Abigail		1. Noah
2. William
3. Michael
4. Alexander
5. Benjamin
6. James
7. Anthony
8. Jacob
9. Liam
10. Daniel & Ethan (tie)

2013

The most popular baby names in Austin in 2013.

Top Girl Names (Austin, 2013)Top Boy Names (Austin, 2013)
1. Olivia
2. Sophia
3. Emily
4. Isabella
5. Emma
6. Mia
7. Abigail
8. Avery
9. Ava
10. Sofia		1. Alexander
2. William
3. Noah
4. Jacob
5. Benjamin
6. Ethan
7. David
8. Liam
9. Andrew
10. Christopher, James, John & Luke (4-way tie)

2012

The most popular baby names in Austin in 2012.

Top Girl Names (Austin, 2012)Top Boy Names (Austin, 2012)
1. Sophia
2. Isabella
3. Emma
4. Olivia
5. Ava
6. Abigail
7. Mia
8. Emily
9. Sofia
10. Harper		1. William
2. Alexander
3. Ethan
4. Noah
5. Christopher
6. Jacob
7. David
8. James
9. Benjamin
10. Matthew

2011

The most popular baby names in Austin in 2011.

Top Girl Names (Austin, 2011)Top Boy Names (Austin, 2011)
1. Sophia
2. Isabella
3. Olivia
4. Emma
5. Abigail
6. Ava
7. Emily
8. Addison
9. Elizabeth
10. Sofia		1. Jacob
2. William
3. Alexander
4. Daniel
5. Noah
6. David
7. Mason
8. John
9. Benjamin
10. Ethan

2010

The most popular baby names in Austin in 2010.

Top Girl Names (Austin, 2010)Top Boy Names (Austin, 2010)
1. Sophia
2. Isabella
3. Ava
4. Abigail
5. Emma
6. Olivia
7. Emily
8. Avery
9. Chloe
10. Elizabeth		1. William
2. Jacob
3. Alexander
4. Noah
5. Christopher
6. Daniel
7. John
8. Andrew
9. Michael
10. Angel

2009

The most popular baby names in Austin in 2009.

Top Girl Names (Austin, 2009)Top Boy Names (Austin, 2009)
1. Isabella
2. Mia
3. Sophia
4. Emily
5. Ava
6. Emma
7. Olivia
8. Elizabeth
9. Natalie
10. Ashley		1. William
2. Jose
3. Daniel
4. Alexander
5. Christopher
6. Andrew
7. Jacob
8. Angel
9. Michael
10. Joshua

2008

The most popular baby names in Austin in 2008.

Top Girl Names (Austin, 2008)Top Boy Names (Austin, 2008)
1. Isabella
2. Sophia
3. Emily
4. Abigail
5. Emma
6. Ava
7. Olivia
8. Ashley
9. Elizabeth
10. Madison & Natalie (tie)		1. Alexander
2. Daniel
3. David
4. Angel
5. Jacob
6. Michael
7. John
8. Joshua
9. William
10. Christopher & Noah (tie)

Did any of these names (or rankings) stand out to you?

Source: Most Popular Baby Names 2008-2017 City Of Austin | Open Data | City of Austin Texas

Image: Adapted from Flag of Texas (public domain)

What popularized the baby name Chael in the early 2010s?

MMA fighter Chael Sonnen
Chael Sonnen

The interesting name Chael, after first appearing in the U.S. baby name data in the early 2000s, rose to peak usage in 2013:

  • 2015: 35 baby boys named Chael
  • 2014: 60 baby boys named Chael
  • 2013: 96 baby boys named Chael [peak]
  • 2012: 61 baby boys named Chael
  • 2011: 34 baby boys named Chael

What was the influence?

Mixed martial artist Chael Sonnen (pronounced CHAYL SUN-en; first name similar to “jail”), whose career lasted from the late 1990s to the late 2010s.

He was most famous during the early 2010s, when he was a top contender in two different UFC weight classes. Also during that time period, he cemented his reputation as one of MMA’s best trash-talkers.

Sonnen’s initial fight with Anderson Silva* for the UFC Middleweight Championship in August of 2010 was voted Fight of the Year at the annual World MMA awards. Ahead of their highly anticipated re-match in July of 2012, a Bleacher Report writer said:

Chael Sonnen is a name that seems to be on the tip of every MMA fans’ tongues these days. Whether you’re online or watching UFC televised programming, Sonnen’s name and face are everywhere.

(Later the same year, a poster at the MMA Underground forum asked, rather presciently: “Will Chael be the hot new boys name for 2013?“)

In April of 2013, Sonnen lost his third and final title bout, this time against Jon Jones in the Light Heavyweight division. But he did win MMA Personality of the Year in 2013 — ousting the usual recipient, Joe Rogan.

So how did Sonnen, who was born in Oregon in 1977, get the first name Chael? Here’s what he said during a Reddit AMA a few years ago:

My Mom took the name “Michael” and removed the “Mi”.

She also altered the pronunciation, of course.

What are your thoughts on the name Chael?

*Anderson Silva and Wanderlei Silva are both from Brazil, but they’re not related.

Sources:

Image: Screenshot of a Stack interview with Chael Sonnen