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Baby names for girls
The five most popular baby names for girls are, in order, Sophia, Emma, Olivia, Isabella and Ava. Surprisingly, the No. 1 name, Sophia, ranks highest in only 11 states while the No. 2 name, Emma, is tops in 27 states. The top name in the District of Columbia is Charlotte, which ranks No. 11 nationwide.
Keep in mind that it took 3,442 births for Sophia to earn the top spot in California but only 42 births for the same name to rank at the top of Wyoming's popularity chart.
- Sophia: Ranks No. 1 in Arizona, California, Indiana, Maine, Maryland, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, Rhode Island, Texas and Wyoming
- Emma: Ranks No. 1 in Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia and Wisconsin
- Olivia: Ranks No. 1 in Colorado, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Minnesota, Utah and Vermont
- Isabella: Ranks No. 1 in Florida and New Jersey
- Ava: Ranks No. 1 in Delaware, Louisiana and Mississippi
Mia, Emily, Abigail, Madison and Elizabeth round out the nation's top 10, but none of these lovely names holds the top spot at a state level. Now, there are a few anomalies. The top five names in some states include names that are not on the nation's overall top 10.
- No. 11 Charlotte is in the top five in Minnesota, New Hampshire and the District of Columbia.
- No. 12 Avery is in the top five in Nebraska.
- No. 14 Chloe is in the top five in Mississippi.
- No. 16 Harper is in the top five in Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota and Wyoming.
- No. 18 Aubrey is in the top five in Louisiana and Mississippi.
- No. 55 Genesis is in the top five in District of Columbia.
Baby names for boys
The five most popular baby names for boys are Noah, Liam, Jacob, Mason and William. While Noah may be tops overall, it's the No. 1 pick of only three states. Liam is less popular than Noah overall, but it ranks at the very top in 18 states. Jacob tops the chart in three states, Mason in eight states and William in 14 states.
- Noah: Ranks No. 1 in Arizona, Illinois and New Mexico
- Liam: Ranks No. 1 in Alaska, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Montana, New Hampshire, Ohio, Oregon, South Dakota, Washington, Wisconsin and Wyoming
- Jacob: Ranks No. 1 in California, New York and Texas
- Mason: Ranks No. 1 in Louisiana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont and West Virginia
- William: Ranks No. 1 in Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Georgia, Kentucky, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah and Virginia
Rounding out the top 10 baby names for boys are Ethan, Michael, Alexander, Jayden and Daniel (although Alexander and Daniel are not No. 1 in any state). Ethan, Michael and Jayden, along with No. 14 Benjamin, top the remaining five states:
- Ethan: Ranks No. 1 in Nevada
- Michael: Ranks No. 1 in Delaware and New Jersey
- Jayden: Ranks No. 1 in Florida
- Benjamin: Ranks No. 1 in Massachusetts
As with the baby girl names, there are names that make the top five in individual states but not in the nation's overall top 10.
- No. 11 Elijah is in the top five in Alabama, Florida, Idaho, Iowa, New Hampshire and the District of Columbia.
- No. 12 Aiden is in the top five in Delaware, Kansas, Massachusetts and Michigan.
- No. 13 James is in the top five in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Iowa, Massachusetts, Michigan, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania and South Carolina.
- No. 14 Benjamin is in the top five in Kentucky, Maine, Nebraska, North Carolina and Ohio.
- No. 15 Matthew is in California's top five.
- No. 16 Jackson is in the top five in Colorado, Indiana, Kentucky, Minnesota and Nebraska.
- No. 17 Logan is in the top five in Hawaii, Massachusetts, Ohio, Vermont and Wisconsin.
- No. 20 Joseph is in Nevada's top five.
- No. 25 Samuel is in the top five in Idaho, Kentucky and South Carolina.
- No. 27 John is in the top five in Alabama, the District of Columbia, Massachusetts and Michigan.
- No. 30 Ryan is in Maine's top five.
- No. 32 Carter is in the top five in Idaho, Illinois, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Oregon, South Dakota, Virginia and Wyoming.
- No. 36 Hunter is in the top five in Mississippi, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia and Wyoming.
- No. 37 Henry is in the top five in the District of Columbia and Massachusetts.
- No. 38 Owen is in the top five in Illinois, South Dakota, Vermont and Wisconsin.
- No. 40 Jack is in New Jersey's top five.
- No. 41 Wyatt is in the top five in Alaska, Idaho, Mississippi, Virginia and Wyoming.
- No. 46 Jaxon is in New York's top five.
- No. 69 Josiah is in New Hampshire's top five.
- No. 81 Bentley is in the top five in Utah and West Virginia.
- No. 88 Easton is in New Jersey's top five.
Top baby names in the New England states
- Connecticut: Emma and William
- Maine: Sophia and Liam
- Massachusetts: Emma and Benjamin
- New Hampshire: Emma and Liam
- Rhode Island: Sophia and Mason
- Vermont: Olivia and Mason
Top baby names in the Mid-Atlantic states
- New Jersey: Isabella and Michael
- New York: Sophia and Jacob
- Pennsylvania: Emma and Mason
Top baby names in the East North Central states
- Illinois: Olivia and Noah
- Indiana: Sophia and Liam
- Michigan: Emma and Liam
- Ohio: Emma and Liam
- Wisconsin: Emma and Liam
Top baby names in the West North Central states
- Iowa: Emma and Liam
- Kansas: Emma and Liam
- Minnesota: Olivia and William
- Missouri: Emma and William
- Nebraska: Emma and Mason
- North Dakota: Emma and Mason
- South Dakota: Emma and Liam
Top baby names in the South Atlantic states
- Delaware: Ava and Michael
- Florida: Isabella and Jayden
- Georgia: Emma and William
- Maryland: Sophia and Liam
- North Carolina: Emma and William
- South Carolina: Emma and William
- Virginia: Emma and William
- Washington D.C.: Charlotte and William
- West Virginia: Emma and Mason
Top baby names in the East South Central states
- Alabama: Emma and William
- Kentucky: Emma and William
- Mississippi: Ava and William
- Tennessee: Emma and William
Top baby names in the West South Central states
- Arkansas: Emma and William
- Louisiana: Ava and Mason
- Oklahoma: Emma and Mason
- Texas: Sophia and Jacob
Top baby names in the Mountain states
- Arizona: Sophia and Noah
- Colorado: Olivia and Liam
- Idaho: Emma and Liam
- Montana: Emma and Liam
- Nevada: Sophia and Ethan
- New Mexico: Sophia and Noah
- Utah: Olivia and William
- Wyoming: Sophia and Liam
Top baby names in the Pacific states
- Alaska: Emma and Liam
- California: Sophia and Jacob
- Hawaii: Olivia and Liam
- Oregon: Emma and Liam
- Washington: Emma and Liam
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