Ireland's Central Statistics Office (CSO) has released the most popular Irish baby names in 2021.
Jack remains the most popular name for boys, while Fiadh has replaced Grace as the most popular name for girls.
The name Jack has retained its top spot on the list every year since 2007, except for 2016 when James was the most popular, reports BreakingNews.ie.
Jack was followed by Noah, James, Conor and Rían as the five most popular names for boys, while Fiadh was followed by Grace, Emily, Sophie and Éabha for girls.
Fifty years ago, in 1971, the most popular names in Ireland were John and Mary.
However, according to CSO statistician Gerard Doolan, baby name trends have seen significant change over the last half-century in Ireland.
“Looking back 50 years ago to 1971, John, Michael, Patrick, David and James were the names most favored by parents of newborn baby boys. There were 198 male newborns named John in 2021, compared with 2,654 in 1971," he told RTÉ in March.
“Interestingly, not one of the top five names for girls in 2021 appeared in the top 100 names a half-century earlier. Mary, Catherine, Margaret, Fiona, and Sinead were the most popular names for baby daughters in 1971, with 1,907 baby girls named Mary in that year.”
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Doolan said Grace, Emily and Sophie have been "permanent fixtures" in the top five names for baby girls every year since 2016.
There were also several new entries to the top 100 slots in 2021.
“After only one new entrant into the top 100 names for boys in 2020, there were 10 new entrants for 2021. The names Teddy, Daithí, Páidí, Jaxon, Brody, Ted, Hunter, Tadgh, Tiernan, and Arlo all featured in the top 100 boys’ names for 2021," said Doolan.
He added that there are three new entrants to the top 100 for girls. These were: Indie, Ayla, and Lottie.
The boy's name with the most growth in popularity between 2020 and 2021 was Ted, which jumped 49 places from 139th place to 90th place.
For girls, Croía is the name that has grown the most in popularity, jumping 43 places, climbing from 95th place in 2020 to 52nd in 2021.
Doolan also added: "Some less common names for boys included Rome, Kobie, Thady, Saul, and Eanna. Less popular girls' names included Sky, Princess, Valerie, Ophelia, and Noelle."
*Originally published in March 2022. Updated in Dec 2022.
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