Popular baby names list out, and here are NJ’s too

Naming a child can be a daunting task. Some want to go with tradition and pick a strong tried and true name that’s been around forever. Others don’t want there to be 4 others with the same name in their class and will go for something not so popular.

Either way, would-be parents always pay attention when these lists come out, and there’s a new one. The list of Top Baby Names for 2021 has been released by BabyCenter.

Keep in mind it’s not exactly official. I mean 2021 isn’t even over yet, and these were gathered from parents who are fans of the website babycenter.com. They say hundreds of thousands of parents shared their newborns names with the site. But for true official records, you’d have to look at the Social Security Administration’s records from a full year. More on that in a moment.

According to BabyCenter, the top 50 names chosen by parents for babies born so far this year are…

Let’s go ladies first.

Girls

1. Olivia
2. Emma
3. Amelia
4. Ava
5. Sophia
6. Charlotte
7. Isabella
8. Mia
9. Luna
10. Harper
11. Gianna
12. Evelyn
13. Aria
14. Ella
15. Ellie
16. Mila
17. Layla
18. Avery
19. Camila
20. Lily
21. Scarlett
22. Sofia
23. Nova
24. Aurora
25. Chloe
26. Riley
27. Nora
28. Hazel
29. Abigail
30. Rylee
31. Penelope
32. Elena
33. Zoey
34. Isla
35. Eleanor
36. Elizabeth
37. Madison
38. Willow
39. Emilia
40. Violet
41. Emily
42. Eliana
43. Stella
44. Maya
45. Paisley
46. Everly
47. Addison
48. Ryleigh
49. Ivy
50. Grace

The girls’ list was pretty similar to last year’s. But the boys’ list has Levi and Asher entering their top ten for the first time.

Boys

1. Liam
2. Noah
3. Oliver
4. Elijah
5. Lucas
6. Levi
7. Mason
8. Asher
9. James
10. Ethan
11. Mateo
12. Leo
13. Jack
14. Benjamin
15. Aiden
16. Logan
17. Grayson
18. Jackson
19. Henry
20. Wyatt
21. Sebastian
22. Carter
23. Daniel
24. William
25. Alexander
26. Ezra
27. Owen
28. Michael
29. Muhammad
30. Julian
31. Hudson
32. Luke
33. Samuel
34. Jacob
35. Lincoln
36. Gabriel
37. Jayden
38. Luca
39. Maverick
40. David
41. Josiah
42. Elias
43. Jaxon
44. Kai
45. Anthony
46. Isaiah
47. Eli
48. John
49. Joseph
50. Matthew

So what about official records from the Social Security Administration that show New Jersey’s most popular baby names? For that, you must go by last year’s since babies are still being born and named until the end of 2021. According to SSA, here are the top 20 girl and boy names in New Jersey for 2020.

Girls

1. Olivia
2. Sophia
3. Emma
4. Mia
5. Ava
6. Charlotte
7. Amelia
8. Isabella
9. Gianna
10. Abigail
11. Leah
12. Sofia
13. Ella
14. Luna
15. Mila
16. Madison
17. Valentina
18. Camila
19. Emily
20. Scarlett

And I bet not a single one will want to pump her own gas.

Boys

1. Liam
2. Noah
3. Lucas
4. Joseph
5. Jacob
6. Michael
7. Benjamin
8. Matthew
9. James
10. Logan
11. Ethan
12. Dylan
13. Alexander
14. Daniel
15. Mason
16. Jack
17. Anthony
18. Jayden
19. William
20. Oliver

The post above reflects the thoughts and observations of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Jeff Deminski. Any opinions expressed are Jeff Deminski's own.