Britain
BritainReuters

The British Office for National Statistics (ONS) published a list of the most popular names for boys and girls in England and Wales, finding that Oliver and Olivia are still number one in England and Wales, with more than 9,000 babies named in 2019, the BBC reports.

Although they were the most popular names, Olivia and Oliver are declining. There were 4,082 Olivias last year, compared with 4,598 the year before, according to the statistics.

Oliver, which has been the number one boys' name since 2013, fell from 5,390 to 4,392.

David Corps, from the ONS, said, "Oliver and Olivia continued their reign as the top boys' and girls' names in 2019, but analysis shows choices in baby names can differ depending on the mother's age.”

"We found younger mothers opted for more modern girls' names like Harper, which has seen a rise since the Beckhams named their daughter so in 2011, and shortened boys' names like Freddie. In contrast, older mothers chose more traditional names such as Jack and Charlotte," added Corps.

The ONS said many commentators had concluded if various spellings of a name, such as Mohammed, were added together it would be the most popular name for boys in England and Wales.

However, the ONS does not do this because it would have to do the same for all other names, for example combining the different versions of Oliver, such as Ollie, Oli, Oliwer and Olly.

Muhammad was the most popular boys' name in the North West, Yorkshire and The Humber, the West Midlands and London.

In addition, Dua Lipa and Star Wars' Kylo Ren were among the biggest influences on parents' choices for their baby names, according to the latest data.

The ONS said babies called Dua doubled in 2019 compared with 2017, when the singer had her first UK number one. Kylo's popularity has risen since the new Star Wars films started in 2015.

The ONS said 126 babies were called Dua in 2019, compared with 63 in 2017. The name Kylo appears to have increased in popularity since the first appearance of Kylo Ren in 2015. Since then, the number of boys named Kylo has risen from 10 to 67 in 2019.