A list of the most popular girls’ names in 2017

According to the National Office of Statistics, the following names were the most popular baby girls’ names in England in 2017:

Name (babies were given the name)
OLIVIA (4,909)
AMELIA (4,127)
ISLA (3,194)
AVA (3,108)
EMILY (2,985)
ISABELLA (2,507)
MIA (2,464)
POPPY (2,405)
ELLA (2,298)
CHARLOTTE (2,296)

Why names become popular?

One of the most popular English girls’ names in 2017 was Olivia. Like the male equivalent Oliver, both these names were popular in 2017. Sometimes names can become popular because of what is happening at the time like Charlotte after Princess Charlotte of Cambridge or just because it has become trendy.

Popular English girls’ names don’t always have to have meaning. A name can sometimes become popular just because of the way it sounds and may have no meaning at all, just a word that is popular. The name Emily, for example, was also on the list of Popular English Girls Names in 2017. This name could inspire a girl to want to go into politics at one point in their life, seeming that it the name of the Labour politician Emily Thornberry or into writing after the actress Emily Brontë or even into acting after Emily Blunt.

Useful Resources

Discover the meaning and origin of other English girls’ names on our website.