Contents
Key findings
- LUCA and ISLA were the most popular names for boys and girls in Scotland in2023.
- Luca became the top name for the first time since records began in 1974,overtaking Noah after its rise to first place in 2022.
- Isla returned to first place again for the first time since 2021, overtaking Olivia, which has been the most popular name for girls in recent years.
- Within the top tens, LUCA rose by four places to 1st in the top boys’ names, and CHARLOTTE rose by five places to 7th within the top girls’ names.
- In the top 100 girls’ names, notable changes were for MABEL (up 102 places tojoint 93rd), DELILAH (up 64 places to joint 99th), and MOLLIE (up 38 places to 67th).
- For boys, OAKLEY (up 64 places to 87th), ROWAN (up 40 places to joint 73rd) and RUAIRIDH (up 34 places to joint 89th) rose by the largest number of places in the top 100.
How has the popularity of your name changed?
Visit our interactive charts and search for any name to see how many babies were given this name between 1974 and 2023 in Scotland.
- ARIA and LUCA were the most common names for girls and boys with mothers aged under 25. For mothers aged 35 and over, the most common names were JACK and EMILY.
- The number of different names given to boys has been increasing year-to-year with a new all-time high in 2023, as did the number of unique names (not given to any other baby that year) for boys. The same pattern was observed for girls’ names and the variety of names given to girls remains much greater that boys.
- The top girls’ name, ISLA, was the most (or joint most) common girls’ name in eight of Scotland’s council areas. The top boys’ name, LUCA, was the most (or joint most) common name in seven areas. Only two of the council areas, Moray and North Ayrshire had both LUCA and ISLA as the top names, however, in both councils the first place for boys was shared between several names.
Data for this publication:
All names given to babies in 2023
All names given to babies between 1974-2023
Charts and tables from this publication
Most common names
The most common names for girls and boys in Scotland in 2023 were LUCA and ISLA. LUCA has been fluctuating in and out of the top 100 boys’ names since the early 2000s but finally rose up to fifth place in 2022 before taking the top place in 2023. ISLA first entered the Top 100 girls name list in the late 1990s and has steadily been increasing in popularity since, until it entered top five most popular names in 2013.
The top 20 names for boys and girls are shown below in Table 1.
Within the top 100 girls’ names, there were four names that rose by 20 places or more –LOTTIE, PHOEBE, MAEVA, IONA, MOLLIE, FIADH, DELILAH, MADDISON. Notably, MABEL entered top 100 this year after rising with 102 places.
Within the top 100 boys’ names, there were six names that rose by 20 places or more – LOUIE, ALBIE, HAMISH, JAX, MURRAY, OWEN, OAKLEY, RUAIRIDH, JOEY, CILLIAN.
Names by age of mother
LUCA, the most popular name for boys in 2023, was the also the most popular name with younger mothers under 30 and was second most popular for mothers aged 30 to 34. The name was not as popular (15th place) with mothers aged 35 and over. NOAH was the second most popular name for babies for younger mothers under the age of 30. Although less popular with mothers aged 30 to 34 (7th place) and 35 and over (5th place), the name was still in top 10 most popular names for all age groups.
JACK (previous top name for boys) was the most popular name for babies with mothers aged 35 and over but was 25th for babies with mothers under 25.
Only two out of the 10 leading boys’ names, NOAH and LEO, chosen by mothers aged under 25 also feature in the top 10 for mothers aged 35 and older. OLIVER also ranked high for all age groups, making it into top 10 for all ages, apart from 30 to 34 (13th place).
Figure 1a: Ranked boys’ names by mothers’ age group (selected names)
ISLA, the most popular name for girls in 2023, was the 2nd most popular name with mothers aged 35 and over but 12th with mothers under 25. EMILY was most popular for babies with mothers in the oldest age group, but was 34th for mothers in the youngest age group. ARIA was the most popular girls’ name for babies with mothers aged 25 and under, but was 12th for mothers in the oldest age group.
Of the 10 leading girls’ names chosen by mothers aged under 25, only OLIVIA and FREYA also feature in the top 10 for mothers of all ages. ELLA also made it into top 10 for mothers aged 35 and older.
Figure 1b: Ranked girls’ names by mothers’ age group (selected names)
Variety of names chosen
In Scotland in 2023, there were 4,494 different first names given to girls and 3,704 different first names given to boys. These statistics are based on the birth registrations of 22,333 girls and 23,586 boys.
The rate of different names per 1,000 births rose between 2022 and 2023 from 194 to 201 for girls. The rate for boys rose from 151 to 157.
Figure 2: Rate of different names per 1,000 births
A random selection of 1,000 baby girls born in 2023 would have 201 different names among them, meaning that any one baby girl would be likely to share her name with five others. For boys, this figure is six, as there were 157 different names per 1,000 babies.
For baby girls born in 1974, there would have been around 58 different names per 1,000 babies; meaning that any one baby would share her name with an average of 17 others. A boy born in 1974 would have likely shared his name with 30 others.
Figure 3a and Figure 3b show how the popularity of the most common baby names and unique baby names have changed over time.
Figure 3a: Most popular names and unique names (girls), 1974-2023
In 2023, 1.2% of baby girls born in Scotland had the most common name (Isla), and 13.4% had a name that no other baby girl was given (highest ever percentage). The popularity of the most common name has generally decreased over time, with the name Laura being given to nearly one in every twenty-five girls born in 1983 (3.9%), more than twice as common as Isla is now.
Figure 3b: Most popular names and unique names (boys), 1974-2023
The name Luca was given to 1.5% of boys born in 2023, while 10% of boys shared their name with no other baby boy born last year (highest ever percentage). Up until 1994, more boys were given the most common name for the year than were given unique names. In 1979, nearly 1 in 18 babies born was given the name David (5.7%), while around 1 in every 43 babies was given a unique name (2.3%).
Names and popular culture
Many names become popular due to appearing on TV or film, or due to a celebrity having this name or choosing it for their baby.
Appearances on the reality TV shows or popular films seem to coincide with increased popularity for a number of names in recent years. Last year, the name LUCA had a huge increase in popularity, entering top five baby boy names for the first year since records started. A potential reason for the peak in popularity could be the Disney and Pixar film of the same name which came out in the middle of 2021. This year’s data is no different, with LUCA climbing to the top and overtaking NOAH. Luca Bish, who appeared on Love Island in 2022, could be part of the reason for the continued interest in the name.
OAKLEY saw the biggest rise in rank this year (up 64 places), entering the top 100 boy names for the first time since records began. A potential reason for the rise in popularity of the name in 2023 is Lauren Oakley, a professional dancer who gained popularity after joining the cast of BBC’s Strictly Come Dancing in 2022.
The reality show has been suggested as an influence on baby name trends before when the number of baby girls called TILLY in 2022 rose to 101st place after Tilly Ramsay’s appearance on Strictly Come Dancing in late 2021.
A notable rise was seen for the name MABEL, which was the name with biggest change in rank for the year, rising 102 places from 195 last year and making it into top 100 girls’ names with 47 baby girls called Mabel in 2023. This could be in part due to the character Mabel Mora, played by Selena Gomez, in the TV show ‘Only Murders in The Building’ which has been gaining popularity over the last couple of years. Another possible influence is the British singer and songwriter Mabel, who rose to prominence in 2017 and has been increasing in popularity since.
MOLLIE also saw an increase in popularity in 2023 (up 38 places) with 64 babies named Mollie last year. This could be in part due to Mollie King, a well-known signer, who has been making her way into reality TV and most recently co-hosted the reality show Beauty and the Geek.
Names by area within Scotland
The top girls’ name, ISLA, was the most (or joint most) common girls’ name in eight of Scotland’s council areas (out of thirty-two). The top (or joint top) boys’ name, LUCA, was the top name in seven areas. Only two of the council areas, Moray and North Ayrshire had both LUCA and ISLA as the top names, however, in both councils the first place for boys was shared between several names.
A table with the most popular names in each council area is available at the beginning of this report.
Council area baby name statistics are only available for names that had three instances or more. Orkney Islands and Shetland Islands had no girls names used three or more times in 2023, following a similar pattern to recent years.
Notes on statistical publications
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