The US Social Security Administration has released the 10 most common newborn names for boys and girls. And what it shows is that Americans are still playing it pretty safe.
The most popular names for boys
Liam, the most common boys’ name for the second year in a row, has been in the top five for six years straight. The name has seen enormous popularity growth, breaking into the top 100 in 2006.
The most popular names for girls
Parents were even less adventurous when it came to girls’ names. Emma, in the top spot for the fifth year in a row, has now also been in the top three for more than 15 years.
Trends in the most popular names
The wider 2018 list looks an awful lot like the year before. The top four names for boys and girls are identical between the two years. Lucas was the only new entry for boys and Harper for girls. They pushed out Jacob and Abigail.
Logan, the fifth most popular boys name in 2017, fell to the number 10 spot last year. The name was likely boosted by the popularity of the Marvel superhero movie Logan, which debuted with a hefty $85 million US box office weekend, evidence that Hollywood continues to influence parents’ decisions. (The name Scarlett came in at 20th, compared to 761 in 2003, a surge driven by Scarlett Johansson’s meteoric rise.)
The annual data is compiled by the Social Security Administration because nearly all US babies are given a Social Security number at birth.