Boy names on the rise in Canada, 2023

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Which names were the trendiest among baby boys born in Canada last year?

Below you’ll find Canada’s fastest-rising and highest-debuting boy names of 2023.

Rises (absolute)

Here are the boy names that saw the biggest increases in usage in terms of absolute change (number of babies) from 2022 to 2023:

  1. Zorawar, rose from 152 to 246 baby boys (+94)
  2. Myles, 356 to 430 (+74)
  3. Henry, 870 to 943 (+73)
  4. Maverick, 581 to 649 (+68)
  5. Matteo, 410 to 474 (+64)

Maverick may have been influenced by the Top Gun sequel Top Gun: Maverick, which was released in mid-2022. (In the U.S., Maverick was among the fastest-rising boy names of 2022, but not of 2023.)

Rises (relative)

Here are the boy names that saw the biggest increases in usage in terms of relative change (percentage of babies) from 2022 to 2023:

  1. Tage, rose from 5 to 41 baby boys (720% increase)
  2. Nawab, 10 to 44 (340%)
  3. Shubhdeep, 9 to 33 (267%)
  4. Dilawar, 5 to 18 (260%)
  5. Meir, 6 to 21 (250%)

My best guess regarding Tage — which now ranks 655th in Canada — is hockey player Tage Thompson. He’s an American who’s only ever played on American NHL teams, but his last few seasons (all with the Buffalo Sabres) have been his best yet. (The U.S. usage of Tage more than doubled last year, but the name is still nowhere near the U.S. top 1,000.)

Debuts

Finally, here are the boy names that debuted most impressively in Canada’s baby name data in 2023:

  1. Gurnawab, 24 baby boys
  2. Agaaz, 18
  3. Virasat, 15
  4. Iraj, 13 [3-way tie]
  5. Manvik, 13 [3-way tie]
  6. Vaayu, 13 [3-way tie]

Other boy-name debuts in the Canadian data included Light (8), Acre (7), Pierrot (7), and Jrue (5).

Do you have thoughts/theories about any of the names above?

Sources: First names at birth by sex at birth, selected indicators (Number) – Statistics Canada, Baby Names Observatory – Statistics Canada, Tage Thompson – Wikipedia

Image: Adapted from Turkey-2036 by Dennis Jarvis under CC BY-SA 2.0.

Girl names on the rise in Canada, 2023

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Which names were the trendiest among baby girls born in Canada last year?

Below you’ll find Canada’s fastest-rising and highest-debuting girl names of 2023.

Rises (absolute)

Here are the girl names that saw the biggest increases in usage in terms of absolute change (number of babies) from 2022 to 2023:

  1. Sofia, rose from 763 to 887 baby girls (+124)
  2. Lainey, 77 to 189 (+112)
  3. Maeve, 368 to 462 (+94)
  4. Margot, 230 to 319 (+89)
  5. Rehmat, 151 to 237 (+86)

Lainey was influenced by Lainey Wilson, a Louisiana-born country singer who has also made appearances on the popular TV series Yellowstone. (In the U.S., Lainey was one of the fastest-rising girl names of 2023.)

Rises (relative)

Here are the girl names that saw the biggest increases in usage in terms of relative change (percentage of babies) from 2022 to 2023:

  1. Anant, rose from 5 to 39 baby girls (680% increase)
  2. Tiaraoluwa, 5 to 20 (300%)
  3. Mehnoor, 5 to 19 (280%)
  4. Hasrat, 12 to 43 (258%)
  5. Bibi, 5 to 17 (240%) [tie]
  6. Japnaaz, 5 to 17 (240%) [tie]

Debuts

Finally, here are the girl names that debuted most impressively in Canada’s baby name data in 2023:

  1. Barkat, 46 baby girls
  2. Aizal, 18
  3. Elaria, 16
  4. Adab, 13 [tie]
  5. Rhaenyra, 13 [tie]

I’m not sure why nearly four dozen Canadian girls were named Barkat (Hindi for “prosperity”) last year. The Indian movie Chor Nikal Ke Bhaga (2023) featured a fictional location called Al-Barkat, but I doubt this is the explanation. (In the U.S., Barkat also debuted in 2023 — but with 10 babies as opposed to 46.)

Rhaenyra was inspired by the character Rhaenyra Targaryen from TV series House of the Dragon. (In the U.S., Rhaenyra debuted in 2022 and rose significantly in 2023.)

Other girl-name debuts in the Canadian data included Idalia (9), Lagertha (7), Lilibet (6), Azzurra (5), Lilac (5), and Purity (5).

Do you have thoughts/theories about any of the names above?

Sources: First names at birth by sex at birth, selected indicators (Number) – Statistics Canada, Baby Names Observatory – Statistics Canada

Image: Adapted from Turkey-2036 by Dennis Jarvis under CC BY-SA 2.0.

Popular baby names in Canada, 2023

Flag of Canada
Flag of Canada

In June of 2023, the population of Canada finally reached 40 million.

Included in that count were roughly half of the 351,477* babies born in Canada last year.

And what were the most popular names among those newborns? Olivia and Noah, yet again.

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

Girl names

  1. Olivia, 1,650 baby girls
  2. Emma, 1,416
  3. Charlotte, 1,412
  4. Amelia, 1,102
  5. Sophia, 1,051
  6. Mia, 924
  7. Chloe, 920
  8. Mila, 915
  9. Sofia, 887
  10. Alice, 793
  11. Ava, 772
  12. Lily, 766
  13. Isla, 759
  14. Ellie, 700
  15. Evelyn, 698
  16. Zoe, 697
  17. Nora, 681
  18. Sophie, 675
  19. Maya, 667
  20. Charlie, 647
  21. Violet, 626
  22. Aria, 613
  23. Florence, 611 (tie)
  24. Isabella, 611 (tie)
  25. Abigail, 608
  26. Ella, 599
  27. Emily, 588
  28. Hannah, 578 (tie)
  29. Hazel, 578 (tie)
  30. Elizabeth, 571
  31. Clara, 562
  32. Rose, 540
  33. Ivy, 533 (tie)
  34. Luna, 533 (tie)
  35. Eva, 527
  36. Eleanor, 503
  37. Harper, 487
  38. Aurora, 475
  39. Avery, 468
  40. Maeve, 462
  41. Victoria, 461
  42. Scarlett, 449
  43. Grace, 447
  44. Emilia, 440
  45. Layla, 432 (tie)
  46. Zoey, 432 (tie)
  47. Elena, 423
  48. Sarah, 419
  49. Livia, 416
  50. Julia, 415

Boy names

  1. Noah, 2,162 baby boys
  2. Liam, 1,813
  3. Theodore, 1,484
  4. Leo, 1,416
  5. William, 1,341
  6. Oliver, 1,245
  7. Lucas, 1,184
  8. Thomas, 1,154
  9. Benjamin, 1,134
  10. Jack, 1,132
  11. James, 1,122
  12. Jacob, 1,086
  13. Ethan, 1,012
  14. Nathan, 1,009
  15. Adam, 969
  16. Henry, 943
  17. Theo, 900
  18. Logan, 891
  19. Owen, 852
  20. Arthur, 818
  21. Levi, 816
  22. Jackson, 767
  23. Luca, 753
  24. Gabriel, 710
  25. Felix, 683
  26. Hudson 659
  27. Charles, 657
  28. Maverick, 649
  29. Daniel, 635
  30. Louis, 623
  31. Muhammad, 619
  32. Samuel, 614
  33. Elijah, 596
  34. Alexander, 588
  35. Caleb, 578
  36. Mason, 566
  37. Nolan, 552
  38. Isaac, 545
  39. Jayden, 531
  40. Aiden, 514
  41. Ryan, 512
  42. Edouard, 502
  43. Mateo, 496
  44. Miles, 490
  45. Michael, 485
  46. Luke, 481
  47. David, 477
  48. Matteo, 474
  49. Bennett, 469 (tie)
  50. Elliot, 469 (tie)

(The #1 names were the same in Alberta, but not in Quebec.)

Among Canada’s fastest-rising baby names were the girl names Sofia, Lainey, and Maeve and the boy names Zorawar, Myles, and Henry.

And what about the names at the other end of the spectrum? Here’s a selection of the baby names that were given to just 5 babies each in Canada last year:

Rare girl namesRare boy names
Audelie, Brie, Celestia, Dasha, Evaluna, Fawn, Gretchen, Harseerat, Icelynn, Jaylah, Kismet, Leony, Melona, Nimar, Ozalee, Philomene, Richelle, Scotia, Twila, Vedika, Walker, Yi, ZirwaAeson, Banner, Chesky, Deedar, Eloic, Fitzroy, Gohan, Huck, Ilay, Jibrael, Kebron, Lemmy, Masten, Noble, Omid, Poyraz, Rantegh, Scottie, Tao, Veeran, Willard, Yichen, Zuhair

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

*Total excludes babies born in Yukon.

Sources: First names at birth by sex at birth, selected indicators – Statistics Canada, Canada’s population reaches 40 million – Statistics Canada, The Daily – Births and stillbirths, 2023 – Statistics Canada

Image: Adapted from Flag of Canada (public domain)

Popular baby names in Finland, 2023

Flag of Finland
Flag of Finland

Last year, the Nordic country of Finland welcomed 44,960 babies. Not all of these babies had government-registered names by the time Finland released its baby name data in April of 2024, though, so only 44,710 of them are accounted for below.

Finnish speakers

About 84.9% of the people in Finland primarily speak Finnish.

Of the 35,481 (named) babies born to Finnish speakers last year, 17,251 were girls and 18,230 were boys.

What were the most popular names among these babies? Aino and Eino.

Here are the top 50 girl names and top 50 boy names:

Girl names (Finnish speakers)

  1. Aino, 264 baby girls
  2. Olivia, 245
  3. Aada, 233
  4. Lilja, 225
  5. Sofia, 224
  6. Eevi, 220
  7. Ellen, 206
  8. Linnea, 203
  9. Helmi, 197
  10. Aava, 196 (tie)
  11. Isla, 196 (tie)
  12. Viola, 183
  13. Kerttu, 177
  14. Emma, 173
  15. Pihla, 171
  16. Venla, 167
  17. Hilla, 165 (tie)
  18. Seela, 165 (tie)
  19. Emilia, 152
  20. Ella, 148
  21. Elli, 145
  22. Livia, 143
  23. Alma, 138
  24. Selma, 128
  25. Elsi, 127
  26. Elsa, 124
  27. Enni, 123
  28. Matilda, 122
  29. Ilona, 120
  30. Oona, 116
  31. Frida, 113
  32. Vivian, 111
  33. Minea, 108
  34. Vilma, 106
  35. Aurora, 105
  36. Hilda, 105
  37. Hilma, 101 (tie)
  38. Stella, 101 (tie)
  39. Lumi, 99
  40. Amanda, 98
  41. Alina, 94 (tie)
  42. Alisa, 94 (tie)
  43. Mila, 93
  44. Mette, 92
  45. Nella, 90
  46. Viivi, 87 (tie)
  47. Bea, 87 (tie)
  48. Siiri, 83 (3-way tie)
  49. Nelli, 83 (3-way tie)
  50. Saimi, 83 (3-way tie)

Boy names (Finnish speakers)

  1. Eino, 376 baby boys
  2. Oliver, 343
  3. Väinö, 320
  4. Elias, 305
  5. Onni, 283
  6. Leo, 278
  7. Emil, 229
  8. Vilho, 217
  9. Eeli, 207
  10. Aatos, 200
  11. Noel, 194
  12. Alvar, 193
  13. Oiva, 192
  14. Toivo, 189
  15. Eemil, 186
  16. Leevi, 184
  17. Nooa, 181
  18. Hugo, 168
  19. Joel, 166
  20. Otso, 150
  21. Viljami, 147
  22. Kasper, 137 (tie)
  23. Eemi, 137 (tie)
  24. Eelis, 136 (tie)
  25. Anton, 136 (tie)
  26. Aarni, 134
  27. Niilo, 131
  28. Lenni, 130
  29. Aapo, 129
  30. Daniel, 126
  31. Julius, 125
  32. Milo, 122
  33. Leon, 121
  34. Edvin, 120
  35. Aaron, 119 (3-way tie)
  36. Viljo, 119 (3-way tie)
  37. Luka, 119 (3-way tie)
  38. Samuel, 116
  39. Veikko, 115
  40. Mikael, 111 (tie)
  41. Eetu, 111 (tie)
  42. Eliel, 109
  43. Lukas, 107 (tie)
  44. Jooa, 107 (tie)
  45. Lucas, 105
  46. Rasmus, 104
  47. Sulo, 102 (tie)
  48. Eemeli, 102 (tie)
  49. Iivo, 100
  50. Jasper, 92

How are those similar-looking #1 names pronounced? The girl name Aino is pronounced IE-no (first syllable rhymes with pie and lie), while the boy name Eino is pronounced AY-no (first syllable rhymes with pay and lay)

Swedish speakers

About 5.1% of the people in Finland primarily speak Swedish.

Of the 3,009 (named) babies born to Swedish speakers in Finland last year, 1,451 were girls and 1,558 were boys.

Here are the top 5+ girl names and top 5 boy names:

Girl names (Swedish speakers)Boy names (Swedish speakers)
1. Ellen, 29 baby girls
2. Astrid, 21
3. Ebba, 20 (tie)
4. Saga, 20 (tie)
5. Olivia, 18 (tie)
6. Stella, 18 (tie)		1. Liam, 33 baby boys
2. Theo, 27 (tie)
3. Alvar, 27 (tie)
4. Leon, 25
5. Hugo, 23

Other languages

Other languages spoken in Finland include Russian, Estonian, Arabic, English, and Sami.

Of the 6,220 (named) babies born in Finland last year to parents who primarily speak something other than Finnish or Swedish, 3,085 were girls and 3,135 were boys.

Here are the top 5 girl names and top 5 boy names:

Girl names (other languages)Boy names (other languages)
1. Sofia, 56 baby girls
2. Emilia, 29
3. Olivia, 28
4. Sara, 25
5. Anna, 24		1. Adam, 52 baby boys
2. Mark, 38
3. Daniel, 34
4. Elias, 32
5. Muhammad, 31

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

Sources:

Image: Adapted from Flag of Finland (public domain)