Top 100 Baby Names 2025 - some thoughts from a humanist baby naming celebrant

For any baby name geek, the day the ONS (Office for National Statistics) publishes its annual baby name data is like our Christmas, and as a humanist baby naming celebrant, I'm certainly no exception! We’ll speculate excitedly in the weeks and days running up to publication day and greedily gobble up the data.

Yesterday (8th July 2026), the ONS released the 2025 list, which covers England and Wales and gives breakdowns according to factors such as the local area and the age of the mother. While the top 10 doesn’t change all that much year to year, there’s plenty to unpack from the top 100 - so here we go!

In this blog post, I'm delving into the detail behind: the top 10 list, the top 100 list, the growing trend for shortened names, the most popular Welsh names in Wales and the relative lack of influence from popular culture.

The Top 10 - Olivia Reigns Supreme!

As with previous years, there’s been very little movement in the top 10 names for both girls and boys:

Source: ONS

Newcomers to the top 10 this year include Freddie for the boys and Isabella for the girls, while both Archie and Ava have just been booted out of the top 10 to number 11. The biggest movement in the top 10 was Ivy, which has fallen from number 4 to number 9 in the girls’ category. Muhammad remains in the top spot for boys (with Mohammed at number 20), with some commentary noting the strong tradition for Muslim families to give the name to their eldest son.

Overall the top 10 still remains very stable, with names like Olive and Oliver and Lily and Luca likely to stay with us for the foreseeable future.

The Top 100 - New Names & Promoted Nicknames

While the top 10 doesn’t tell us much about the year-on-year movements for the most popular names, things become a lot more interesting in the top 100 list.

New entries this year include Eliana, which made huge gains to make it into 62^nd place . Other new girls’ names in the top 100 include Gracie (though Grace is still more popular), Anaya, Alba, Marnie, Lilah and Frankie, while Vincent, Ruben (as an alternative spelling of ‘Reuben’), Stanley and Carter have made it onto the boys’ list.

Nature-inspired names continue to be popular for girls, including Daisy, Willow, Rose and Hazel - and perhaps unsurprisingly, Poppy becomes a very popular name for girls born in November and Ivy (though not Holly these days) creeps up in December.

Source: Nameberry

Nickname No More

One thing I’ve noticed this year especially is the prevalence of names that would once have been considered as nicknames or shortened names are being used in their own right - and are now sometimes more popular than the original. At my clients’ baby naming ceremonies, I’ve often seen parents choose to do this where they really want to honour a beloved relative and then want to give it a more contemporary spin to make it their own.

Here’s a breakdown below of how this plays out in the top 100, especially for the boys. We now have more boys called Freddie than Frederick in 2025 and more Vinnies than Vincents, while Theodore is still just about holding its own against Theo for now - though this is likely to change in the coming years. For the girls, Grace is still more popular than Gracie (which entered the top 100 this year like I mentioned earlier) and Lottie is quickly catching up with Charlotte.

Unfortunately the ONS doesn’t publish data on middle names, where I suspect families are more likely to hold on to the traditional, original versions of their ancestors’ names.

How do traditional names compare with their shorter counterparts?

Enwau Cymraeg - Welsh Names

As a proud Welsh woman with a strong Welsh name myself, I had to delve into the Wales-specific data and Welsh names specifically.

For girls, the Welsh names in the top 100 for Wales include:

-Mali (4)

-Alys (29) - while Alice doesn’t even feature in the top 100 for Wales

-Mabli (36)

-Ffion (joint 55th place)

-Seren (joint 55 place) - the Welsh word for ‘star’

-Nansi (61) - though the Nancy spelling is still slightly more popular in Wales at no. 55

-Eira (71) - the Welsh word for ‘snow’, which is popular for winter babies

-Efa (joint 72nd place) - just about more popular than ‘Eva’ (76), though not as popular as -Evie (36)

-Elsi (joint 72nd place) - though much less popular than ‘Elsie’, which is way up at number 3 in Wales

-Eleri (83)

-Lowri (94)

-Anwen (100)

And for boys in Wales, the Welsh names in the top 100 include:

-Osian (10)

-Macsen (12)

-Harri (21) - way ahead of the English spelling of Harry at no. 42

-Jac (26) - and likewise Jac is much higher in the rankings in Wales than Jack, which shares the 42nd position with Harry.

-Dylan (36)

-Elis (joint 36th place) and Ellis (51)

-Idris (53)

-Tomos (56) - though slightly below its English counterpart of ‘Thomas’ (42) and quite a bit behind Tommy (28)

-Emrys (65)

-Cai (81)

-Evan (90) - while it doesn’t have the Welsh ‘f’ spelling, Evan is still considered a name of Welsh origin.

-Dewi (96) - my dog’s name!

-Gruffydd (in joint 96th place)

Guto was the top boy’s name in Gwynedd (though it doesn’t feature in the top 100 in Wales), Tomos in joint first place on Ynys Môn (Anglesey), Osian in joint first place in Ceredigion, along with Mali in first place in Caerphilly and joint first place in Blaenau Gwent, Efa in Ceredigion, Elsi in joint first place in Denbighshire and Nansi in Gwynedd.

It’s also interesting to see the trend for shortened names is even more acute in Wales, with far many more Lotties than Charlotte (in 3rd and 39th place in Wales ) and more Theos than Theodores (in 3rd and 20th place in Wales.) There also seems to be a slight gender difference, with Welsh boys’ names ranking higher on average than for the girls.

What’s your favourite Welsh name? I was personally delighted to see there were six Mairs born this year!

No Obvious Influence from Popular Culture

Every year the press will try and find a link between the top 100 list and celebrity culture - there was the year Maeve and Otis from Sex Education were said to have influenced the charts, while Arthur and Ada were attributed to Peaky Blinders. Luca continues to do well, though it’s unclear whether the 2021 Disney film has a part to play in that.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, there were no baby Keirs born in 2025 and just 20 girls called Taylor - though Ophelia (the title of one of Taylor Swift’s songs released in October 2025) was in 81st place overall.

One Happy Humanist Baby Naming Celebrant & Name Geek!

So there we have it - it’s all over for another year!

It’s been interesting looking at how the stats compare with the babies whose naming ceremonies I’ve led in the last year or so as well - I’ve had a real mix of names in the top 10, the top 100 plus some rarer names in the top 500 and a couple of unique names where there haven’t been any listed at all; this happens when only 2, 1 or 0 babies have the name.

I always love hearing the story behind children’s names whenever I lead a naming ceremony, and taking a deeper look into the list of names for the last year gives a fascinating glimpse into our wider society today.

I’d love to hear your thoughts! Are there any names on the top 100 list that have surprised you? Any new favourites?

I was also really pleased to be quoted by HuffPost UK for their piece as well, which you can read here .

And if you'd like to work with me as your humanist baby naming celebrant, I'd love to hear from you. And for more inspiration, why not take a look at one of my previous blog posts on naming ceremonies here.

Mair Garland is a humanist celebrant based in London, leading baby naming ceremonies as well as weddings, funerals and celebration of life ceremonies in London, the South East and beyond. Mair specialises in bilingual ceremonies in Welsh and French.

This post was originally published on Substack. You can also follow Mair on Instagram here.

Garland Ceremonies Monthly Newsletter June 2026 by Multilingual Celebrant Mair Garland: Joyful June Weddings, New Pre-Planned Funerals Offering & My New Shop!

My June As a Multilingual Celebrant

It might only have been a month since the last instalment, but we’ve certainly had all four seasons this June. As a Celt in London, I can’t say I’ve loved the sweat and sleepless nights with the latest heatwaves, but the bilingual weddings I’ve led this month have been HOT HOT HOT (in the best possible way)! More on those below as well as my new online shop, a brand-new offering for funerals plus a shout-out from Josh Widdicombe, no less.

Three Beautifully Bilingual Weddings

I led three weddings in June, two that were bilingual in Welsh/English and one French/English wedding, with two of them being in London and my first ever in Bristol, which is truly the dream month for a multilingual celebrant like me. Congratulations, Llongyfarchiadau and Félicitations to them all!

Lisa & Andrew - Beckenham Place Mansion

At the start of month, we had Lisa & Andrew’s bilingual Welsh/English wedding in Beckenham Place Mansion. With them both coming from Wales, we had plenty of Welsh references throughout - including a Welsh love spoon exchange. The rain we had that day made the Mansion look even more atmospheric than usual and it created a really cosy ceremony vibe. My favourite detail from this wedding were their customised illustrations!

Andrew & Lisa, Beckenham Place Mansion

Lisa & Andrew's fabulous bilingual welcome sign!

Molly & David - York House, Twickenham

Molly and David, who are also from Wales (and have known each other since primary school!) held their wedding at York House, which is the register office in Twickenham. This is the first time I’ve worked at a register office as a celebrant, but the registrars and I worked really well together, with the registrars leading the legal section followed by my ceremony. David and Molly ended their ceremony by (literally) tying the knot with a hand fasting.

Couples often ask me about ceremonies with both a registrar and celebrant at the same time, and I’m more than happy to answer any questions you might have about how it works in practice.

Molly & David - York House, Twickenham

Molly & David's hand fasting ribbons on slate - a touch of North Wales in London!

Melody & Jonny - Berwick Lodge, Bristol

And last, but certainly not least, was Melody and Jonny’s bilingual French/English wedding at the lovely Berwick Lodge in Bristol and also live-streamed to Melody’s family in Guadeloupe! Jonny and Melody first met at choir and so it was only right that they and the choir sang a gorgeous version of All Of Me during the ceremony, which brought us all to tears - as did Jonny delivering his vows in immaculate French!

Melody & Jonny - Berwick Lodge, Bristol

Jonny & Melody provided their guests with translations of their readings and vows

Looking ahead to July, I’m now busy putting the final touches on some gorgeous baby naming ceremonies, including my first at the Horniman Museum in Forest Hill.

I still have a couple of ceremony slots available from this autumn, so please get in touch!

New Funerals Offering: Pre-Planned Funerals & Living Funerals

I’m now offering both Pre-Planned and Living Funerals as part of my wider funerals offering. But what are they, and what’s the difference between them both?

Pre-Planned Funerals

It’s a real misconception that you have to be of a certain age or living with a life-limiting illness to plan for your funeral: anyone can do it. Whether you’ve been thinking actively about the type of funeral you want or you’re coming up with your funeral wishes for the first time, I can help you put pen to paper.

You can include as much (or as little) detail as you want in your funeral wishes - where do you want to have it? What music do you want played? What readings? Who would you like to speak? How do you want people to feel? I can help you firm up your ideas as well as capturing your life story in your own words or even write the whole script for you, if that’s what you’d like.

Living Funerals

I first came across the concept of a Living Funeral in Grayson Perry’s excellent series, Rites of Passage. As the name suggests, a living funeral will take place when the person we’re honouring is still alive. Those who choose to hold a living funeral for themselves will often do so where they’re living with a life-limiting illness and want to say goodbye to the most important people in their lives on their own terms, in their own words and in a place that’s meaningful to them.

The Garland Ceremonies Online Shop is Open!

I’ve cut the figurative ribbon on my brand new online shop, where I have two brand new webinars available to buy, drawing from my experience as a multilingual celebrant:

1. How to Craft Your Bilingual Wedding Ceremony

2. How to Craft a Bilingual Funeral Ceremony

   
   

My intention for both of these workshops is to empower anyone who wishes to hold a part of their ceremony in more than one language to do so (and indeed other celebrants and industry professionals who want to learn more about bilingual ceremonies or want to offer them to their own clients). They both cover questions including: the benefits of a bilingual ceremony; where to include a second language; how to include a second language and case studies of real bilingual ceremonies.

Both webinars are for sale for £22 each or for £35 as a bundle.

While I speak English, Welsh and French, I hope these webinars will be useful to you whatever language you speak and wherever in the world you are.

Garland Ceremonies in the Press

Parenting Hell Podcast Small Business Shoutout!

On the same day I was travelling to Melody and Jonny’s wedding in Bristol, I was listening to one of my favourite podcasts, Parenting Hell, when I heard the one and only Josh Widdicombe give a small business shoutout to Garland Ceremonies and to naming ceremonies especially! I’d written in a few weeks before, and had totally forgotten about it, so it came as a complete surprise as I was stepping onto the train at Paddington. Thank you, Parenting Hell!

In the words of Josh Widdicombe, naming ceremonies really are ‘a great idea!’

Listen to the episode here.

June has been a wonderful month of weddings and still plenty of barbecues in the garden! I’m really looking forward to celebrating lots of lovely new babies with their naming ceremonies in July to start planning some lovely late summer and autumn ceremonies, including a wedding in France! As ever, I’d love your feedback on the newsletter and if you’re thinking of planning a ceremony later this year or in 2027, I’d love to hear from you.

Hwyl am y tro (bye for now!)

Mair x

Garland Ceremonies Monthly Newsletter by London Celebrant Mair Garland: May 2026 - celebrating people, places & communities

My May

A whole month has passed since publishing my first newsletter…and today I’m back! We’ve truly experienced all four seasons in the month of May, which for me as a London-based celebrant has been a mixture of joyful naming ceremonies, deeply meaningful funerals and putting the final touches on three beautiful June weddings.

A surprising first for Garland Ceremonies - a naming ceremony featuring a garland ceremony!

On the same weekend as the Hackney Half Marathon, we celebrated baby R’s naming day and first birthday at the Victoria & Alexandra community centre at the heart of Victoria Park in East London.

I loved working with R’s parents on his ceremony. When I met with them, they really took the time to tell me in detail the story behind his name and to explore how they could best celebrate his French and Indian heritage as a key part of the ceremony.

We looked back to other significant occasions in R’s parents’ lives for inspiration, with his mother reminiscing about her own Mum’s wedding to her stepfather, which included a Jaimala garland ceremony as a nod to her Indian heritage. This felt an obvious way to celebrate R’s family and his heritage, all while continuing an existing family tradition.

A beautiful jaimala (garland) to welcome baby R

As well as adorning R with his garland, his family also asked me to read a lovely French poem called ‘La Vie’, which is a reflection of parents’ hopes for their baby before they were born and in the first year of their lives. If you have any questions about incorporating French into your ceremony, I hope my French page will help.

Funerals: revealing the threads between people & places

This month, I led a funeral for P in West Norwood, who was a gifted artist and wood carver. His funeral made me truly wonder about the legacies we’ll all leave behind for our families and local communities. P’s family are taking great comfort from continuing to enjoy the art he created at home and further afield - they even included some of his sketches in his order of service, which was a beautiful touch.

They especially take comfort from the wood carvings he helped create in Brockwell Park in Herne Hill, and are continuing to see the public enjoying his work after his death.

The fallen oak tree branch that P helped carve with the artist mORGANICo in Brockwell Park, Herne Hill (Photo Credit: mORGANICo)

This is just one example of how learning about someone’s life can also deepen our understanding of our local communities and the stories behind features that become an every-day part of the local fabric and landscape.

And I’m sure the more funerals I’ll lead as a London celebrant, the more I’ll learn not only about the life we’re remembering, but also about the communities where they left their mark.

Summer Weddings & Autumn Planning

I can’t wait for a wonderful month of bilingual weddings in June!

First up is L & A’s bilingual Welsh and English wedding ceremony at one of my most local wedding venues, Beckenham Place Mansion. The space is so versatile and is just perfect for a summer ceremony. It’s always hard to believe the mansion and park are still in London!

Beckenham Place Mansion, South-East London

I’m also looking ahead to three gorgeous naming ceremonies in July, including my first at the Horniman Museum - which is somewhere I go to all the time with my family, and has been on my ceremonies bucket list for the longest time. In fact, the last time I was there with my son and Dad a few weeks ago, we happened to come across the most stunning funeral led by Poetic Endings, a funeral director in Forest Hill. I’ve recently been added to Poetic Endings’ list of recommended celebrants - do take a look at my profile page on their website here.

A beautiful horse-drawn carriage for a funeral at the Horniman Museum by Poetic Endings

I still have a couple of ceremony slots available in August, September and October, so please get in touch! Likewise, it’s been so lovely speaking with prospective wedding clients about their plans for 2027 too.

Plan Your Ceremony

What’s caught my eye this month?

How to Kill a Language - Sophia Smith Galer

I mentioned in last month’s newsletter how much I’d loved the Word For Word podcast by language journalist Sophia Smith Galer and her new book, ‘How to Kill a Language’ is equally brilliant. It offers visceral case studies about why certain languages thrive or die out and the actions we can take to protect minority languages. As a fluent Cymraeg (Welsh) speaker living outside of Wales, her observations about how quickly a language can die out within families was incredibly poignant. I strongly recommend it for anyone with an interest in languages and linguistics.

Eastenders - a wedding, a funeral AND a naming ceremony!

This month in Eastenders, we said goodbye to Nigel and Ross and Vicki had a celebrant wedding of their own, but I was most struck by the Ghanaian naming ceremony the Knights and Mitchells held for baby Ivy. So often, soaps still tend to stick with christenings to welcome new life into the world, so it was so refreshing to see a non-religious alternative being reflected on our screens. And Kojo would clearly make a brilliant celebrant!

Like with a humanist naming ceremony, they took the time to explain the meanings behind each of Ivy’s name, culminating in a joyful naming for her - perfect!

Ivy’s naming ceremony on Eastenders

Eisteddfod yr Urdd: a trip down memory lane

Eisteddfod yr Urdd is an annual youth festival in Cymru (Wales), which is a week of arts competitions across several categories (including music, poetry writing and recitation, dancing - the works!), which has been on in Ynys Môn (Anglesey) this week.

The talent of these young people is always astonishing and it’s something I’ve never quite seen replicated on English-speaking TV. Like lots of children from all over Cymru, I took part in these competitions every year from the age of 5 (with my debut being a solo song about an elephant!) and dabbled in every category you can think of - singing, reciting, folk and disco dancing (badly!) and playing the piano, harp and flute. It took me a long time to reach the national finals of the Eisteddfod, but the first time I reached the top 3 was when it was last in Ynys Môn way back in 2004, where I came third in the Woodwind Solo Competition for Years 7-9, and I eventually won the first prize in the senior category two years later (photo from then below!)

Me at 16 competing in the Urdd Eisteddfod in 2006!

It seems that more or less every well-known Welsh actor or musician who took part in the Eisteddfod (including the likes of Matthew Rhys and Iwan Rheon from Game of Thrones) will say how much taking part meant to them and helped shape their careers. I too am immensely grateful to the Urdd Eisteddfod - I know it’s had a key role to play in giving me a love of the arts and public speaking, and has shaped my celebrant practice today.

The Eisteddfod yr Urdd is available to watch on BBC iPlayer - do take a look!

May has been a lovely month of remembering, celebrating…and plenty of barbecues in the sun! I can’t wait for a June full of weddings and to start planning some lovely late summer and autumn ceremonies. As ever, I’d love your feedback on the newsletter and if you’re thinking of planning a ceremony later this year or in 2027, I’d love to hear from you.

Hwyl am y tro (bye for now!)

Mair x

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Mair Garland is a London celebrant, leading baby naming ceremonies, weddings, funerals and celebrations of life in London and beyond. Mair specialises in bilingual ceremonies in Welsh and French. Click here to find out more.