Baby names: top 10 most popular baby boy and girl names in 2021 so far - including Luna and Arlo

Many couples will be welcoming a new addition into their family this year, and will have plenty of planning to do before the big arrival - including picking out a name.

With so many names to choose from it can be a difficult task narrowing the options down, but some names are already proving to be popular choices this year.

International name trends

Nameberry has revealed the most popular baby names parents-to-be are planning to name their little ones.

The list is based on data from the website, which shows which moniker's parents are most interested in at the moment, not what they have actually named their babies.

The data helps to give an indication of what the big baby name trends will be for the year ahead, revealing which names are the hottest choices right now.

Nameberry gets traffic from more than 200 countries and territories around the world, showing which names are the most popular in different parts of the world.

The site selected 25 of its top 50 countries by visitor numbers to reveal the top five most viewed girl and boy names so far in 2021.

The analysis found that Jayden is the most popular boy’s name among visitors from all three African nations on the list, including Ghana, Nigeria and South Africa, while in countries with a large Muslim population, like Pakistan, UAE and Nigeria, Zara is a top choice for girls.

Luna and Arlo are proving popular across the English-speaking world and much of Europe along with Latin names like Aurora and Atticus.

Ancient boy’s names, such as Atlas, Rufus and Severus, also look to become popular in Nordic nations like Finland and Sweden.

Boy’s names which end in the letter ‘O’ also continue to be a big trend internationally, with names like Hugo, Leo, Milo and Santiago, found to be a hit in many countries.

Nameberry revealed the overall trends for baby names this year point to grand, elaborate monikers for girls, such as Ophelia and Pesephone, while gender-neutral names beginning with ‘R’ are also proving popular, including Remy, River and Rhys.

What names are popular in the UK?

Surprisingly, the names Olivia and Oliver were not featured in the top names for the UK, despite being firm favourites.

Olivia has previously been the top baby girl’s name in the UK for the past two years, but failed to break into the top five.

As for boy’s, names beginning with the letter ‘A’ were among the top picks, making up three out of the top five.

Here’s what made it the top five for baby boys and girls in the UK:

Most popular boy’s names:

- Arlo

- Oscar

- Hugo

- Albie

- Atticus

Most popular girl’s names:

- Luna

- Ophelia

- Elodie

- Iris

- Maeve

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