These are the most popular baby names of 2018 so far

Is your name on the list?

Sarah Jones
Monday 23 July 2018 15:16 BST
Comments
(Getty Images)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

We’re already midway through 2018 and to celebrate the half-year mark a pregnancy and parenting website has revealed the most popular baby names of the year so far.

A useful guide for parents-to-be who want to avoid giving their offspring a name that’s going to dominate nursery registers everywhere, Babycentre has released its roundup of the trendiest monikers.

Topping the girl’s chart, Olivia has kept hold of the coveted number one spot for the fourth year running, followed by Sophia, Amelia, Lily, Emily, Ava, Isla, Aria, Mia and Isabella.

Meanwhile, Muhammed remains at the top for boys, with Oliver, Noah, George, Harry, Leo, Charlie, Jack, Freddie and Alfie also making it into the top 10.

Outside of the top slots though, Babycentre has also reported a number of growing baby name trends including weird and wonderful spellings.

The website’s registration shows that Jaxon is now a more popular choice than Jackson, while Aaron has no less than 13 different spellings and Aria has 12.

Royal names have also seen a surge in popularity with Victoria, Charlotte, George and Arthur all climbing the rankings.

However, there has been no significant change for Meghan, Megan or Louis just yet, but this could all change in the full-year results.

One of the biggest news stories of 2018, the #MeToo movement has also had a significant impact on baby names this year with the Weinstein scandal instigating a drop of more than 30 per cent for the name Harvey.

Meanwhile, names of key women involved in the movement have featured more heavily in Babycentre’s registrations including Alyssa, Ashley, Rose, Gwyneth, Jennifer and Asia.

Top 20 girls’ names of 2018 so far:

  • Olivia
  • Sophia
  • Amelia
  • Lily
  • Emily
  • Ava
  • Isla
  • Aria
  • Mia
  • Isabella
  • Isabelle
  • Ella
  • Charlotte
  • Grace
  • Evie
  • Maya
  • Harper
  • Sophie
  • Layla
  • Freya

Top 20 boys’ names of 2018 so far:

  • Muhammad
  • Oliver
  • Noah
  • George
  • Harry
  • Leo
  • Charlie
  • Jack
  • Freddie
  • Alfie
  • Oscar
  • Arthur
  • Henry
  • Jacob
  • Archie
  • Joshua
  • Theo
  • Ethan
  • Lucas
  • Logan

Earlier this year, Babycentre also predicted that food-inspired baby names looked set to become one of the biggest trends of 2018 with names like Saffron, Honey, Basil and Angus soaring in popularity.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in