ALLENTOWN, Pa. — More than ever, parents are choosing baby names that are unique, but some trends are still at play.
Here are some of the favorite names parents in the Lehigh Valley have picked for their babies in 2022, according to Lehigh Valley Health Network and St. Luke's University Health Network.
- Lehigh Valley Health Network and St. Luke's University Health Network released a list of 2022's most popular baby names picked in the Lehigh Valley
- The top three boys' names at LVHN almost mirror a national chart
- Charlotte is the most popular girl's name this year, with Sophia, Isabella and Olivia following not far behind
Charlotte is the most popular girl’s name, with 34 girls born at Lehigh Valley Hospital–Cedar Crest and LVH–Muhlenberg given that moniker. Following not far behind Charlotte are Sophia, Isabella and Olivia.
As for boys' names, Liam, Noah and Lucas are the top three selected by parents delivering newborns at LVHN this past year.
In 2022, 46 boys were named Liam compared to 48 in 2021. Noah’s popularity has dropped from last year’s 47 times to 39 times this year.
Besides the trend, LVHN has also seen some interesting baby names this year.
While Honesty, Ocean, Hermione and Winter are some unique names for girls, Ocean also was among the one-of-a-kind picks for boy's names — along with Hendrix, Bronx and Messiah.
If interested, people also can check out the names of new babies born at the Health Center on area billboards.
Some names also run the board at St. Luke's
With a few days left to go in 2022, St. Luke's say these are the names popular at three area hospitals where babies are delivered. You'll notice a trend:
St. Luke’s Allentown Campus: Isabella and Elijah
St. Luke’s Anderson Campus: Olivia and Noah (closely followed by Liam)
St. Luke’s Upper Bucks Campus: Sadie and James
In a news release, St. Luke's noted that a century ago, in 1922, John and Mary were the top monikers given to kids born in the U.S, according to huffpost.com.
The health network suggested that in future years there could be a resurgence in popularity of traditional baby names from the last century, including names like James, Henry, Elizabeth and Anna.
National trend
Olivia tops the selection of baby girl names across the nation, according to BabyCenter, a website part of Everyday Health Group providing information on pregnancy, children’s health, parenting and more.
The top six girls' names also include Emma, Amelia, Ava, Sophia and Isabella. Charlotte, the most popular girl’s name in the Lehigh Valley, was only in ninth place nationally.
As for boys' names, the Lehigh Valley trend nearly mirrors the national one this year, with Liam topping the chart and Noah securing second place in both the United States and the Lehigh Valley.
The rest of the top six boys’ names are Oliver, Elijah, Mateo and Lucas. Lucas also is the third most popular boy's name in the Valley.
River, a gender-neutral name, also has jumped 31 places on both the girl and boy lists nationally.
According to BabyCenter, the organization conducted the analysis based on the data collected from 416,000 babies born across the United States through Nov. 1, 2022.
To learn more, visit the website.
