Oliver and Emily win name game
Boys’ and girls’ top picks for parents in South Lanarkshire
While Oliver remains the top boys name boys in South Lanarkshire, Emily has edged ahead as the most popular pick for girls.
Emily rose from second to become the top girls’ name across the area, while Olivia slipped to the number two spot.
A total of 30 boys were named Oliver in South Lanarkshire during 2016, and 41 girls were called Emily.
The top ten names for boys in South Lanarkshire were Oliver (30); James (28); Finlay (27); Jack (27); Leo (27); Daniel (24); Logan (23); Aaron (22); Charlie (22); and Noah (22).
And the top names for girls in South Lanarkshire were: Emily (41); Olivia (31); Sophie (28); Jessica (26); Lucy (25); Aria (23); Isla (23); Ellie (20); Amelia (19); Ava (19); and Sophia (19).
Dr Julia Cresswell, author of the Chambers Dictionary of First Names, has admitted to being “mystified” at the popularity of Oliver.
She said: “I can’t think of many really famous people in the last few years who would have inspired Oliver.
“Oliver is in fact a Viking name, originally being Olaf, but it became popular in France because of the epic The Song of Roland in which a character called Olivier was Roland’s advisor.
“It became popular in England after Oliver Cromwell but with his fall it sharply fell out of favour, only to be revived by Charles Dickens’ Oliver Twist.
“It’s popular throughout the UK and maybe people go for it ‘as a safe bet’ in that it’s not particularly unusual.”
Over in North Lanarkshire, the top boys’ names were: Jack (31); Oliver (28); Leo (27); Noah (27); Aaron (26); Lucas (26); Lewis (25); Jacob (24); James (22) and Logan (21).
And the top girl’s names in North Lanarkshire were: Olivia (57); Emily (42); Aria (33); Amelia (29); Ava (27); Sophie (23); Lily (22); Sophia (21); Charlotte (20); and Ella (19).
Nationally, while Jack remains the top boys name for the ninth year, Olivia has edged ahead as the most popular pick for girls.
James rose from third to second place among the boys, while Oliver was down from second to third and Lewis remained in fourth place.
The rest of the boys’ Top Ten were: Logan (up three places to fifth); Harry (up ten places to sixth); Noah (up eight places to seventh); Leo (up five places to eighth); Charlie (down three places to ninth) and Alexander (down five places to tenth).
Sophie fell from second to third (having been the top girls’ name in every year from 2005 to 2013). Isla remained in fourth place.
The rest of the girls’ top ten were: Ava (up one place to fifth), Amelia (up one place at sixth), Jessica (down two places to seventh), Ella and Lucy (remaining eighth and ninth, respectively), and Charlotte (up eleven places to tenth).