What's in a name? Well, a lot.
New data from five Australian jurisdictions have revealed the most popular baby names of 2024 — and there are a few standouts.
Oliver has topped the list for the most popular boy's name in three states — Tasmania, Western Australia, and Victoria. In NSW and ACT, the name took out the second and third spots, respectively.
For 11 years in a row, it's been the nation's favourite baby name.
Other popular boy names included Noah, which topped the list in NSW and the ACT. Henry, Theodore, Leo and Charlie also ranked highly across the states.
ACT was the only state or territory to have the most popular name in the world, Muhammad, in its top ten.
For girls, it was a tight race between three favourites: Isla, Charlotte and Amelia.
Ultimately, Isla topped the list in Western Australia and Victoria. Charlotte was the favourite in NSW and tied first in Western Australia, and Amelia was the most popular baby girl name in Australia's capital.
Tasmanians went for something different, with Hazel scoring as the most popular girl's name.
Other popular names for little girls included Olivia, Mia, and Harper.
The other states and territories did not have data available for baby names from 2024 yet.
Most popular baby names in Victoria in 2024
Isla took out the top spot for the number one name for girls in Victoria for the first time.
Previous favourite Amelia dropped down to third place, while Charlotte maintained second place.
Oliver soared above the pack to be the most popular boy's name.
Oliver and Isla have taken out the top spots in 2024 for the most popular baby names in Victoria. Source: SBS News
Most popular baby names in NSW in 2024
For the first time, Noah has topped the list of baby boy names in NSW.
Charlotte, on the other hand, has held the spot six times in the last decade.
Before 2024, Oliver was the most popular boys' name since 2014.
Noah and Charlotte were the most popular baby names in NSW in 2024. Source: SBS News
Most popular baby names in ACT in 2024
Amelia and Noah took out the top spots for the most popular baby names in the ACT for 2024.
It's the first time Noah has been at the top of the list, while Amelia is now a seasoned veteran, making it the sixth year this name has been at number one.
It's the first year the name Charlotte has not topped the list since 2019.
ACT was the only region to have the most popular name in the world, Muhammad, in its top ten. It came in at ninth place. Source: SBS News
Most popular baby names in Western Australia in 2024
Oliver and Isla were the most popular names in Western Australia for the fifth year running. They tied in first place with Noah and Charlotte.
Oliver has topped the list ten times in the last eleven years.
Amelia narrowly missed out on a three-way tie for the most popular girls' name, losing out by just one less registration.
Oliver and Isla were the most popular names in Western Australia for the fifth year running. Source: SBS News
Most popular baby names in Tasmania in 2024
Again, Oliver has topped the list of boy names in Tasmania.
But things were mixed out on the girl front, with Hazel taking the lead. Hazel only appeared in the list for two other states — Victoria and NSW.
Tasmania is doing things differently than other states, with it being the only area with Hazel as its top girl's name. Source: SBS News
Strong favourites for gen alpha
If it isn't already obvious, there are some particularly popular baby names we've seen for gen alpha.
Gen alpha is classified as those born from 2010 to 2024, and mostly has gen Y (millennial) parents.
Social researcher McCrindle's 2024 Australia Baby Names report, released mid-last year, revealed that, across Australia, Oliver and Isla were the most popular baby names for 2023.
Oliver enjoyed its eleventh year in the top spot, while Isla contended in the top five for multiple years and dethroned recent favourites Amelia and Charlotte.
Parents of boys are opting for traditional Christian names, including Noah, Samuel, Isaac, Levi, James, Jacob, Joseph, Daniel and Ezra.
They're also using shortened versions of traditional names, like Theo, Harry, Billy, Ollie and Leo.
Parents of gen alpha girls are opting for names that are short, feature two syllables, and end with 'i', 'ie', or 'y', including Isla, Lily, Ivy, Evie, Ruby and Mila.
Parents are also drawing inspiration from nature and botanical influences when naming their girls, with favourites like Lily, Ivy, Willow, Ruby, Daisy, Violet, Luna, Poppy, Summer and Rose emerging.
What's in and what's out?
Some names are rapidly increasing in popularity, according to McCrindle research, including Miles, Tommy and August for the boys. Boy names with the biggest decline included Connor, Charles and Remy.
For the girls, Cleo, Nina and Ada are the biggest risers nationwide, but Eden, Claire, and Gracie lost popularity.
How culturally diverse are gen alpha names?
According to McCrindle's research from 2024, the Arabic name Muhammad came in 53rd place nationwide.
Italian name Leo came in at number four, while Finn, originating from Ireland, came in at 37th place.
In total, there were eight culturally diverse names in the top 100, including Kai (Hawaiian), Ezra (Hebrew), Gabriel (Hebrew), Beau (French) and Luka (Slavik).
The number one girl's name, Isla, is of Spanish origin.
Second-place Amelia has Latin/German origin.
Rounding out the list of what McCrindle considers as "culturally founded names" were Remi (French), Sofia (Greek), Audrey (British), Mila (Slavik), Imogen (Celtic) and Sadie (Hebrew).
