Names.org has been tracking the most popular baby names across the States so far in 2023, and the most popular baby name for boys just happens to be Irish.
Liam has been crowned the most popular baby name in a number of US regions and the United States as a whole, according to Names.org.
The name Liam is of Irish origin and is actually the shortened version of the Irish name Uilliam, meaning “strong-willed warrior” or “protector”. The name comes from the old Germanic name that is very common today – William.
Names.org – the most complete record of first name usage in America
How does the site track these trends, you might be wondering. Well, the folks at Names.org explained the method to their findings in depth.
They said, “Each year, the Social Security Administration publishes the totals for the first names from all Social Security card applications for births that occurred in the US since 1880”.
They add that the “publication is the most complete record of first name usage in the United States”.
Social Security can take time to collect this data on baby names each year, so Names.org “used data on the actual births in recent years to predict the most popular baby names of 2023”.
Liam – the most popular boys name in the US
Liam has now been the number-one name for boys in the United States for at least the past three years. Before Liam, Jackson was the most popular and before Jackson was Noah.
For 2023, Liam has been crowned the most popular boy’s name in many individual areas, like New York and California, as well as the country as a whole, beating out Noah for the top spot.
The name comes from the name William, which is comprised of two German words – ‘willa’, meaning will or resolution, and ‘helma’, meaning helmet.
Together, the name directly translates to “helmet of will”. However, the name is better translated to “strong-willed warrior”, “protector”, or “guardian”.
After Liam, the top ten lists of the most popular baby boy names in the US are Noah, Oliver, James, Elijah, Henry, William, Lucas, Benjamin, and Theodore.
The most popular names in the US – the trends for 2023
Irish names have been popular in the United States for centuries. However, when it comes to the top ten most popular girl names, no Irish names are present.
The most popular name for girls in the US right now is Olivia, followed by Emma, Amelia, Charlotte, Ava, Sophia, Mia, Isabelle, Evelyn, and Luna.
However, when it comes to the most popular gender-neutral names of 2023 in America, one name of Irish origin did make the list – Riley, from the Irish surname O’Reilly, or O’Raghallach in Irish.
