This release was issued under a previous government.
The royal visit by Prince William and Kate Middleton, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, appears to have left a lasting impression on Alberta families naming babies in 2011, with eight boys named Prince, six girls named Princess, and one boy named Princewill.
“It was an honour for Alberta to host the royal newlyweds last July on their first official tour as a married couple,” said Service Alberta Minister Manmeet Bhullar. “The Duke and Duchess were warmly received by our province and it’s no surprise that parents would want to name their children after a couple who showed such care for Albertans, particularly in Slave Lake.”
William and Kate both became more popular names in 2011. At 199 in total, William rose to 9th place from 11th the previous year. With 50, Kate ascended to 64th place from 79th. One baby girl was named Pippa.
Families chose other monarchy-related monikers: Knightly, Lady, Mirza, Queen, Reign, Royal, and Sovereign for girls; and Dominion, Duke, Emir, Kaiser, King, Lord, Malik, Princelife, and Sultan for boys.
Preliminary figures show that 50,592 babies were born in Alberta in 2011, just 10 less than 2010, and 906 fewer than 2009’s record-breaking total of 51,498. Overall in 2011, Olivia was the most popular name for girls, the choice of 290 families. The top pick for boys was Liam, with 270 families giving the name to their newborn sons.
The Vital Statistics branch of Service Alberta recorded 5,695 distinct boy names and 6,994 unique girl names, including two girls named Unique. Parents also celebrated new additions to their families with names such as Amen, Destiny, Divine, Favour and Marvelous for boys; and Heavenly, Hopestill, Hosanna, Kismet, Lovely, Praise and Precious for girls.
Several parents of boys chose military-related names, including Arrow, Caliber, Cannon, Gunner, Jag, Major, Pistol, Remington, Stryker, Tank and Trooper. Many girls were named after nature, with names such as Acacia, Amaranth, Autumn-Destiny, Cedar, Feather, Juniper, Oryx, Tulip, Star, Storm and Winter.
Some babies received one-of-a-kind names, such as the boys named Doc, Essay, J-Cub, Jäger, Moo, Stylez, Smiley, Solo, Stiff, and Tuff; and the girls named Dreamz, Luv, Lyric, Mega, Meta, Siri, Story, Symphonie, and Tuba.
Alberta’s top names for baby girls and baby boys
Place |
Girl Names |
Girl Names |
Girl Names |
|
1 |
Olivia |
Emma |
Emily |
|
2 |
Sophia |
Olivia |
Madison |
|
3 |
Emma |
Emily |
Sarah |
|
4 |
Emily |
Isabella |
Emma |
|
5 |
Ava |
Sophia |
Taylor |
|
6 |
Chloe |
Ava/Chloe |
Hannah |
|
7 |
Abigail |
Ella |
Megan |
|
8 |
Lily |
Abigail |
Sydney |
|
9 |
Brooklyn |
Alexis |
Samantha |
|
10 |
Sophie |
Lily |
Ashley |
|
Place |
Boy Names |
Boy Names |
Boy Names |
|
1 |
Liam |
Liam |
Ethan |
|
2 |
Ethan |
Ethan |
Joshua |
|
3 |
Mason |
Logan |
Matthew |
|
4 |
Lucas |
Alexander |
Jacob |
|
5 |
Jacob |
Lucas |
Tyler |
|
6 |
Benjamin |
Jacob |
Ryan |
|
7 |
Alexander |
Noah |
Nicholas |
|
8 |
Noah |
Benjamin |
Dylan |
|
9 |
William |
Owen |
Alexander |
|
10 |
Logan |
Carter |
Benjamin |
Media inquiries may be directed to:
Mike Berezowsky
Communications
Service Alberta
780-644-4533
[email protected]
To call toll free within Alberta dial 310-0000.