Muhammad overtakes Noah as most popular boy name
Muhammad was the top choice for parents naming their children in England and Wales in 2023, with over 4,600 babies registered with this name.
According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), it has been one of the top 10 names for babies since 2016, but has now been overtaken by previous favorite Noah.
However, there is a level of regional variation and Muhammad does not appear in the top 10 for three regions of England.
Other spellings of the name Mohammed and Mohammad also made the top 100 list for England and Wales. The ONS considers each spelling to be a separate name, with variations of Muhammad proving popular over the years.
Olivia remains the most popular choice for baby girls, followed by Amelia and Isla. These top three remain unchanged from 2022.
The popularity of hyphenated names among girls jumped last year to more than 19,140, up from about 12,330 a year earlier.
New entries to the girls’ top 100 list include Lila, Raya and Hazel, while Jax, Enzo and Bodhi made the boys’ top 100.
The ONS said on Thursday that pop culture “continues to influence” name choices, citing singers Billie Eilish and Lana Del Rey, the Kardashian-Jenner family’s children Reign and Saint and movie stars Margot Robbie and Cillian Murphy.
Other music artists named Miley, Rihanna, Kendrick, and Elton also saw growth in 2023. The ONS said this was likely due to album releases, touring or high-profile performances by Miley Cyrus, Kendrick Lamar, Elton John and Rihanna.
The days of the week have been another source of inspiration for parents, with names like Sunday and Wednesday increasing in popularity over the past year. The ONS ruled out a possible link with the Netflix series Wednesday, released in late 2022.
As far as seasons are concerned, autumn ranks 96th on the list and summer 86th, up 10 places from 2022, but 38 places lower than 2013.
Meanwhile, royal names were less popular in 2023 – a decline that is part of an ongoing trend.
Like Elizabeth and Charles, George, Archie, Harry and Charlotte have all become less popular in recent years.
The data on the top baby names of 2022 was Released last May Amid changes in resources.
The publication dates of The Most Popular Picks of 2024 have not yet been confirmed.
