
It turns out that there is something all of America agrees on. We agree on girls’ names, more or less. The national #1 name, Olivia, ranks among the top 5 girls’ names in all 50 states. In fact, just 14 different names account for the full girls’ top 5 in all 50 states. The biggest outliers are Lucy and Willow, and can you even guess where those names are most popular? (Answer: Utah for Lucy, and Wyoming for Willow.)
On the boys’ side, things look different. No name makes the top 5 in all states, and it takes a 30 different names to cover the boys’ top five from coast to coast. Compare individual states’ favorites and you’ll find plenty of local color. The top five boys’ names in New Mexico include Mateo, Elijah and Ezekiel. In South Dakota, Wyatt, Asher and Lincoln. In New Jersey, Lucas, Joseph and Matthew. Usually you have to look beyond the top of the charts to get that kind of contrast.
This gender difference is a dramatic reversal from the days when girls’ names swept in and out of style while timeless classics continued to dominate the boys’ charts. Today, names are style statements for both sexes, and consensus on boys’ names is an increasingly distant memory.
Find your own state, and perhaps your own style, in these state-by-state charts of the top five for boys and girls.
TOP BOYS’ NAMES BY STATE | |||||
STATE | #1 | #2 | #3 | #4 | #5 |
Alabama | William | James | John | Elijah | Noah |
Alaska | Liam | Oliver | Henry | James | Noah |
Arizona | Liam | Noah | Sebastian | Elijah | Mateo |
Arkansas | William | Noah | Elijah | Liam | Oliver |
California | Noah | Liam | Mateo | Sebastian | Ethan |
Colorado | Liam | Oliver | Noah | William | Henry |
Connecticut | Liam | Noah | Mason | Lucas | James |
Delaware | Noah | Liam | Benjamin | Mason | Colton |
Florida | Liam | Noah | Elijah | Lucas | Alexander |
Georgia | Liam | William | Noah | Elijah | James |
Hawaii | Noah | Liam | Mason | Elijah | Ezekiel |
Idaho | Oliver | Liam | Henry | William | Benjamin |
Illinois | Noah | Liam | Benjamin | Oliver | Alexander |
Indiana | Liam | Oliver | Noah | Elijah | Benjamin |
Iowa | Oliver | Liam | Henry | William | Lincoln |
Kansas | Liam | Oliver | Henry | Noah | James |
Kentucky | Liam | William | Elijah | Noah | James |
Louisiana | Noah | Elijah | Liam | James | William |
Maine | Oliver | William | Owen | Henry | Liam |
Maryland | Liam | Noah | James | Jacob | Benjamin |
Massachusetts | Benjamin | Noah | Liam | William | Lucas |
Michigan | Noah | Liam | Oliver | Elijah | Henry |
Minnesota | Henry | Oliver | William | Theodore | Liam |
Mississippi | William | Noah | James | Elijah | John |
Missouri | Liam | Oliver | William | Henry | Elijah |
Montana | Oliver | Henry | James | William | Owen |
Nebraska | Oliver | Liam | Henry | William | Benjamin |
Nevada | Liam | Noah | Oliver | Sebastian | Alexander |
New Hampshire | Benjamin | Liam | Owen | Oliver | Henry |
New Jersey | Liam | Noah | Lucas | Joseph | Matthew |
New Mexico | Liam | Noah | Mateo | Elijah | Ezekiel |
New York | Liam | Noah | Lucas | Jacob | Michael |
North Carolina | Liam | Noah | William | James | Elijah |
North Dakota | Liam | Owen | Oliver | Henry | William |
Ohio | Liam | Oliver | Noah | William | James |
Oklahoma | Liam | Noah | Oliver | Elijah | William |
Oregon | Oliver | Liam | Henry | Benjamin | Noah |
Pennsylvania | Liam | Noah | Benjamin | Lucas | Mason |
Rhode Island | Noah | Lucas | Julian | Liam | Oliver |
South Carolina | William | Noah | Liam | James | Elijah |
South Dakota | Liam | Oliver | Wyatt | Asher | Lincoln |
Tennessee | William | Liam | Noah | Elijah | James |
Texas | Liam | Noah | Mateo | Elijah | Sebastian |
Utah | Oliver | Liam | William | Henry | Jack |
Vermont | Oliver | Henry | Liam | Owen | Wyatt |
Virginia | Liam | William | Noah | James | Lucas |
Washington | Liam | Oliver | Noah | Benjamin | Henry |
West Virginia | Liam | Carter | Mason | Easton | Oliver |
Wisconsin | Oliver | Liam | Henry | Owen | Noah |
Wyoming | Liam | Oliver | Henry | Asher | William |
TOP GIRLS’ NAMES BY STATE | |||||
STATE | #1 | #2 | #3 | #4 | #5 |
Alabama | Ava | Olivia | Emma | Amelia | Harper |
Alaska | Emma | Evelyn | Amelia | Ava | Olivia |
Arizona | Olivia | Emma | Sophia | Isabella | Mia |
Arkansas | Olivia | Ava | Emma | Amelia | Harper |
California | Olivia | Emma | Mia | Sophia | Camila |
Colorado | Charlotte | Olivia | Emma | Sophia | Ava |
Connecticut | Olivia | Emma | Charlotte | Mia | Sophia |
Delaware | Emma | Olivia | Charlotte | Ava | Sophia |
Florida | Emma | Isabella | Olivia | Sophia | Mia |
Georgia | Ava | Olivia | Emma | Isabella | Charlotte |
Hawaii | Olivia | Ava | Emma | Amelia | Aria |
Idaho | Emma | Olivia | Charlotte | Evelyn | Amelia |
Illinois | Olivia | Emma | Sophia | Ava | Charlotte |
Indiana | Olivia | Amelia | Emma | Ava | Charlotte |
Iowa | Charlotte | Emma | Evelyn | Harper | Olivia |
Kansas | Olivia | Emma | Harper | Charlotte | Evelyn |
Kentucky | Amelia | Ava | Emma | Harper | Olivia |
Louisiana | Olivia | Ava | Amelia | Emma | Harper |
Maine | Charlotte | Amelia | Olivia | Ava | Harper |
Maryland | Olivia | Ava | Sophia | Emma | Charlotte |
Massachusetts | Olivia | Charlotte | Emma | Isabella | Sophia |
Michigan | Olivia | Charlotte | Amelia | Ava | Emma |
Minnesota | Olivia | Charlotte | Evelyn | Emma | Amelia |
Mississippi | Ava | Olivia | Emma | Amelia | Harper |
Missouri | Olivia | Charlotte | Ava | Amelia | Emma |
Montana | Emma | Harper | Olivia | Charlotte | Ava |
Nebraska | Olivia | Emma | Charlotte | Amelia | Harper |
Nevada | Sophia | Emma | Mia | Olivia | Isabella |
New Hampshire | Charlotte | Olivia | Amelia | Harper | Emma |
New Jersey | Emma | Olivia | Sophia | Mia | Isabella |
New Mexico | Ava | Olivia | Sophia | Mia | Isabella |
New York | Olivia | Emma | Sophia | Isabella | Mia |
North Carolina | Ava | Olivia | Emma | Amelia | Charlotte |
North Dakota | Amelia | Evelyn | Harper | Emma | Olivia |
Ohio | Olivia | Ava | Charlotte | Emma | Harper |
Oklahoma | Olivia | Emma | Ava | Harper | Amelia |
Oregon | Olivia | Emma | Evelyn | Charlotte | Harper |
Pennsylvania | Olivia | Emma | Ava | Charlotte | Harper |
Rhode Island | Charlotte | Olivia | Sophia | Ava | Amelia |
South Carolina | Olivia | Ava | Charlotte | Amelia | Emma |
South Dakota | Emma | Harper | Ava | Charlotte | Olivia |
Tennessee | Ava | Olivia | Harper | Emma | Amelia |
Texas | Emma | Olivia | Isabella | Mia | Camila |
Utah | Olivia | Emma | Charlotte | Lucy | Evelyn |
Vermont | Harper | Amelia | Charlotte | Evelyn | Olivia |
Virginia | Ava | Charlotte | Olivia | Emma | Sophia |
Washington | Olivia | Emma | Charlotte | Amelia | Evelyn |
West Virginia | Emma | Amelia | Harper | Olivia | Ava |
Wisconsin | Olivia | Charlotte | Evelyn | Emma | Harper |
Wyoming | Charlotte | Olivia | Harper | Emma | Willow |
2 Comments
It doesn’t surprise me that Lucy is especially popular in Utah, since members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (“Mormons”) love to honor Lucy Mack Smith, the mother of our founder Joseph Smith, and we also love C.S. Lewis and The Chronicles of Narnia. We also love to name baby girls Emma for Joseph Smith’s wife Emma Hale Smith. I seem to remember reading in another post here that Porter is also unusually popular in Utah, no doubt because of another early Mormon figure, Porter Rockwell. If you ever felt like doing one, it would be interesting to read a post on Mormon baby naming trends and the influences they have in areas with high concentrations of Mormons (Utah, Idaho, Arizona, etc.). There is a joke here that Utahns choose bizarre, “made-up” baby names with unusual spellings, each more “cutesy” than the last. Perhaps because parents here are so young? Or perhaps because birth rates are so high, so parents are really reaching for a unique choice? Anyway, it would be interesting to hear your take.
I’ve also been told that the “surname pool” in the Mormon community is relatively un-diverse, and thus another factor is that they get more creative with first names to compensate for the common last names.