Liam and Olivia top baby names in record-breaking 2013

Liam and Olivia are the most famous baby names in Alberta.

Liam held on as the top baby name for boys, but Olivia edged out Emma for girls in the third straight record year for births in Alberta.

Alberta parents welcomed 53,090 babies – 25,789 girls and 27,301 boys – in 2013, ahead of 2012’s total of 52,439, and 2011’s tally of 50,844.

“Alberta is a great place to raise a family and we want Alberta’s kids to have the best life possible. The Building Alberta plan is one way we are working to ensure that the children born today have the education, health care and other supports necessary to thrive in world we live in.”

Doug Griffiths, Minister of Service Alberta
Names chosen in 2013 suggest Albertans like fantasy genre books and TV series, with several monikers from George R.R. Martin’s Game of Thrones franchise given to Alberta children. For girls, Arya, Brienne, Catelyn, Daenarys, Osha, Sansa, and Talisa made the list; while Tyrion, Theon, Robb, Martell, Jory, and Rayder appeared for boys.

For the second year running The Hunger Games trilogy may have provided inspiration for babies named Peeta, Cato, Rue, Primrose, Seneca, and Gale.

Some parents took inspiration from J.R.R. Tolkien, naming their boys Rohan and Thorin and girls Arwen. The Harry Potter series was also represented with Hermione, Ginny and Draco.

The science fiction and fantasy genre may also have credit for other names including Inara, from Joss Whedon’s Firefly; Lyra, of Philip Pullman’s Golden Compass trilogy; and Aslan, courtesy of C.S. Lewis’s Chronicles of Narnia.

Greek mythology also appeared to have an influence on Albertans who welcomed babies last year. Aries, Atlas, Orion, Midas, and Adonis made the list for boys. Athena, Artemis, Pandora, Hera, and Persephone were chosen for girls.

Several baby girls were named after precious stones including Diamond, Amethyst, Emerald, Opal, and Sapphire. While for boys, parents were inspired by brand names: Stetson, Oakley, Dyson, Kindle, Tesla, and Wrangler.

A number of interesting compound names also appeared on this year’s list: Heavendip, Goodluck, Godbless, and Thunderheart for boys; and Godwill and Violetrose for girls.

Some of the more stand-out names for boys include Urban, Sir, Canyon, Hurricane, Logic, One, Alias, and Jixxr. While for girls, these creative monikers made the list: Eunique, Conshens, Barbie, Diva, Tempest, Siri, Arrow, Glamour, and Lava.

Albertans who are trying to choose the perfect name for their little bundles of joy can download the free Alberta Baby Names app for the iPhone, iPad and Android devices. The app has more than 95,000 Alberta baby names and their popularity going back to 1980.

The Vital Statistics branch of Service Alberta recorded 5,980 distinct boy names and 7,191 distinct girl names in 2013. The figures are based on reports to date from hospitals and birthing centres. Final numbers and a complete list of names will be available on the Open Data Portal once all the information is collected and compiled later this year.

Under the Building Alberta Plan, our government is investing in families and communities, living within our means, and opening new markets for Alberta’s resources to ensure we’re able to fund the services Albertans told us matter most to them. We will continue to deliver the responsible change Albertans voted for.