What are the commonest baby names in your borough?
Every year, the Office for National Statistics releases data on the commonest baby names registered over the past year. The 2024 data have now been released. As usual, the London stats are broken down by borough, allowing us to make the graphic above.
Commonest boys' names in London boroughs
The big trend here is the disappearance of Noah. Two years ago, 13 London boroughs had Noah as the most popular boys' name. In 2023 this had dropped to nine. This year, it has sunk off our chart. That's not to say that London is no longer producing any Noahs. This is still the second most common boys' name across the whole of London (and England and Wales), but it never quite reaches the top in any given borough.
Alexander seems intent on conquest. The name triumphed in seven London boroughs in 2024, up from just one entry in the previous year. Daniel is also lionised this year. The name did not figure in our map from 2023, but now bags a couple of boroughs. Other names bubbling to the top, which have not been present in recent years, include Harry (Hillingdon and Bexley), Henry (Islington), and Moshe (Hackney).
Commonest girls' names in London boroughs
Fun fact: in 2023, 23 of the 32 boroughs had a most-popular girls' name that ended with the letter 'a'. This year it's risen to 26. This is partly attributable to the unstoppable rise of Amelias. 14 London boroughs are represented by the name, up from seven last year. Olivia, as ever, is also doing well with seven — same as in 2023.
The biggest decline is in Sophie/Sophia/Sofia. The name once flew with the Amelias and Olivias, but is now down to just two boroughs (Harrow and Richmond).
Sarah and the Amelia-like 'Emily' are the only new arrivals on our chart.
Commonest names London-wide
Interesting though these stats are, they're also based on small data sets. Typically, a 'top' name was only registered a few dozen times in the given borough, and the second-place name may have seen only a registration or two fewer. If we instead sum the data across all the London boroughs, then the stats stack up as follows:
BOYS
| 1. Muhammad | 1,044 |
| 2. Noah | 595 |
| 3. Leo | 458 |
| 4. Adam | 409 |
| 5. Theodore | 384 |
| 6. Oliver | 378 |
| 7. Arthur | 333 |
| 8. Mohammed | 314 |
| 9. Oscar | 299 |
| 10. Alexander | 296 |
Muhammad remains by far the commonest new name for boys, even more dominant if we add the 314 for variant spelling Mohammed. These are broadly the same placings as for 2023, with a resurgence of Arthurs and Oscars, and a dip in Lucas.
Meanwhile, the rest of England and Wales like to call their babies Archie and George, names that don't figure in the London Top 10.
In total, 54,644 male births were registered in London in 2024. This is a slight rise from 53,320 in 2023 but below the 54,870 of 2022.
GIRLS
| 1. Olivia | 377 |
| 2. Sofia | 372 |
| 3. Amelia | 359 |
| 4. Maya | 315 |
| 5. Sophia | 295 |
| 6. Sienna | 292 |
| 7. Mia | 269 |
| 8. Maryam | 265 |
| 9. Lily | 239 |
| 10. Isabella | 232 |
All change at the top, with Amelia dropping to third place, despite winning big in the 'top names per borough' stats. There's not much in it, though, frankly. Maryam enters the top 10, while Isla drops out.
Several names make the Top 10 across England and Wales that are not featured in the London top slots. These include Florence, Poppy, Ivy, Ava and Elsie.
In total, 51,482 female births were registered in London in 2024. This is a slight rise from 50,932 in 2023, and a tiny bit under the 51,826 from 2022.
See previous results for 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, 2018 and 2017
