https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/northern-ireland/northern-irelands-most-popular-baby-names-revealed/a1342492036.html

Jessica Rice
Today at 10:30

Movies, TV series and celebrities appear to be influencing some Northern Ireland parents’ choice of baby names.

The top names for newborn children registered last year have been revealed.

Grace was the top baby name for girls born in 2024 while James topped the list for boys.

However, some more unusual names are appearing in the list, according to the NI Statistics and Research Agency.

Some of the less common names given to boys in 2024 were Royce, Bentley and Phoenix.

For girls, names included Dolly, Primrose and Melody.

NISRA said: “Birth registrations in 2024 included 948 baby names that had not been used before.

"Blockbuster movies, popular television series, current celebrities and memorable places continue to appear to be influencing factors for some parents.”

Grace returned to the top spot as the most popular girls’ name after five years at number one from 2018 to 2022 and has appeared in the top three most popular names for 19 consecutive years.

James has returned to number one, having been top of the list for boys for a six-year stretch between 2015 and 2020, then regaining it in 2022.

Cillian was a close second to James. This name has increased in popularity since entering the top 10 most popular names in 2020.

Noah returned to third place – it has placed third five times since 2015, after reaching first place in 2023.

Jude entered the boys’ top 10 in 2024 for the first time in the series which dates back to 1997.

Within the boys’ top 100, the highest climbers in popularity between 2023 and 2024 were Austin, Rossa, Callum, and Joseph.

For baby girls, Olivia came in second to Grace, having re-entered the top three for the first time since 2018.

Fiadh returned to third place, down from second place in 2023 and has held a top five position since 2020.

Within the girls’ top 100, the highest climbers in popularity between 2023 and 2024 were Maya, Maria, Eliza, and Ayla.

As with previous years, there were a greater variety of girls’ names (2,289) than boys’ names (1,826) registered in 2024.

The baby name statistics have been derived from annual births registration data and include all live births, to both resident and non-resident mothers, registered in Northern Ireland during 2024.

Different spellings of a name have been treated as separate names, for example Amelia and Amelija.

Top 10 baby names in Northern Ireland 2024

Boys

  1. James – 143 Babies

  2. Cillian – 142 Babies

  3. Noah – 139 Babies

  4. Jack – 130 Babies

  5. Theo – 125 Babies

  6. Jude – 124 Babies

  7. Luca – 109 Babies

  8. Charlie – 106 Babies

  9. Oisin – 105 Babies

  10. Oliver – 104 Babies

Girls

  1. Grace – 125 Babies

  2. Olivia – 109 Babies

  3. Fiadh – 104 Babies

  4. Aoife – 97 Babies

  5. Emily – 96 Babies

  6. Lily – 95 Babies

  7. Charlotte – 95 Babies

  8. Isla – 91 Babies

  9. Sophia – 91 Babies

  10. Freya – 90 Babies

by pickneyboy3000

18 comments

  2. What’s the weirdest child’s name you’ve heard in recent years? I’ll go first, Fox.

  3. Surprised at how normal all these names are, I was expecting some /r/tragedeigh worthy names

  8. Family near me , Agatha, Genevieve, Maurice and I’m assuming difficult birth John

  9. Gracie Barra will be delighted with the Royce – no Rickson?

  10. My son is Roman I think I’ve only came across a handful of the same. Love the name

  11. >As with previous years, there were a greater variety of girls’ names (2,289) than boys’ names (1,826) registered in 2024.

    Heard that before, v interesting. Are there any theories on why? It is true in different cultures too?

  12. James and Grace are probably considered perennial classic mainstays- feature prominently in classic / contemporary literature and culture… so no great surprise.

    It looks like a fairly “normal” list with no surprising entries.

  16. How is oisin pronounced? Is it “oh-sheen” or “uh-sheen”?

  18. My preference would (maybe old fashioned) be fanny, nowadays that could be good craic.

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