Baby names gaining popularity in the 21st century

(STACKER) – With the rise of social media and the increased necessity of having a major online presence, many feel the growing need to develop a personal brand to set themselves apart. For expectant parents, this often translates into major anxiety over picking the perfect baby name. After all, the base of any personal brand, online or not, really starts there. Ethnic, religious, political, or specifically gendered names signal a lot about a person—intentional or not.

The impact a name has, and the angst parents feel over choosing the right one, is nothing new. The Wall Street Journal reported more than a decade ago that parents were facing unprecedented stress over choosing a name and going to untold—and expensive—lengths to find the perfect moniker. Expectant parents are hiring consultants, employing numerologists’ services, and even taking polls among their friends and family to help them narrow down the near-infinite list of possibilities.

Stances on the use of popular names for a newborn have always varied. Some parents appreciate the relative neutrality of a popular name, knowing their child won’t be singled out. Others prefer something more unique to set their child apart.

To assist you in your baby name search, Stacker found the baby names that have risen the most in popularity during the 21st century using data from the Social Security Administration. Girl and boy names were ranked by popularity for the years 1980-1999 and for the years 2000-2021 based on the number of babies given that name at birth during those periods.

The 100 most popular girl and boy names for 2000-2021 were then sorted by subtracting each name’s rank from its 1980-1999 rank to find the change. The names with the most positions gained in the 21st century when compared to the last two decades of the 20th century made this list. Overall, the growth of names for baby girls appears much more drastic than the growth of names for baby boys.

Read on to find out which names are poised to be some of the most popular over the next century.

#25. Boy: Nolan

– 2000-2021 rank: #98 (86,892 newborns named Benjamin)
– 1980-1999 rank: #399 (2,117 newborns)
– Positions gained: 201

#25. Girl: Sophie

– 2000-2021 rank: #91 (70,935 newborns named Sophie)
– 1980-1999 rank: #1,229 (535 newborns)
– Positions gained: 1,138

#24. Boy: Xavier

– 2000-2021 rank: #77 (108,664 newborns named Xavier)
– 1980-1999 rank: #400 (2,116 newborns)
– Positions gained: 323

#24. Girl: Ava

– 2000-2021 rank: #7 (286,136 newborns named Ava)
– 1980-1999 rank: #1,148 (597 newborns)
– Positions gained: 1,141

#23. Boy: Isaiah

– 2000-2021 rank: #42 (180,587 newborns named Isaiah)
– 1980-1999 rank: #366 (2,470 newborns)
– Positions gained: 324

#23. Girl: Scarlett

– 2000-2021 rank: #77 (79,910 newborns named Scarlett)
– 1980-1999 rank: #1,224 (537 newborns)
– Positions gained: 1,147

#22. Boy: Oliver

– 2000-2021 rank: #64 (147,838 newborns named Oliver)
– 1980-1999 rank: #407 (2,082 newborns)
– Positions gained: 343

#22. Girl: Layla

– 2000-2021 rank: #50 (101,825 newborns named Layla)
– 1980-1999 rank: #1,206 (550 newborns)
– Positions gained: 1,156

#21. Boy: Josiah

– 2000-2021 rank: #78 (108,391 newborns named Josiah)
– 1980-1999 rank: #444 (1,782 newborns)
– Positions gained: 366

#21. Girl: Kaylee

– 2000-2021 rank: #46 (105,255 newborns named Kaylee)
– 1980-1999 rank: #1,505 (389 newborns)
– Positions gained: 1,459

#20. Boy: Owen

– 2000-2021 rank: #50 (170,270 newborns named Owen)
– 1980-1999 rank: #436 (1,865 newborns)
– Positions gained: 386

#20. Girl: Ellie

– 2000-2021 rank: #89 (71,627 newborns named Ellie)
– 1980-1999 rank: #1,612 (355 newborns)
– Positions gained: 1,523

#19. Boy: Hunter

– 2000-2021 rank: #45 (178,545 newborns named Hunter)
– 1980-1999 rank: #470 (1,643 newborns)
– Positions gained: 425

#19. Girl: Madelyn

– 2000-2021 rank: #81 (78,734 newborns named Madelyn)
– 1980-1999 rank: #1,609 (356 newborns)
– Positions gained: 1,528

#18. Boy: Diego

– 2000-2021 rank: #93 (95,201 newborns named Diego)
– 1980-1999 rank: #536 (1,258 newborns)
– Positions gained: 443

#18. Girl: Brooklyn

– 2000-2021 rank: #47 (104,608 newborns named Brooklyn)
– 1980-1999 rank: #1,695 (331 newborns)
– Positions gained: 1,648

#17. Boy: Mason

– 2000-2021 rank: #21 (267,313 newborns named Mason)
– 1980-1999 rank: #490 (1,496 newborns)
– Positions gained: 469

#17. Girl: Avery

– 2000-2021 rank: #29 (138,055 newborns named Avery)
– 1980-1999 rank: #1,772 (312 newborns)
– Positions gained: 1,743

#16. Boy: Jackson

– 2000-2021 rank: #32 (228,895 newborns named Jackson)
– 1980-1999 rank: #507 (1,402 newborns)
– Positions gained: 475

#16. Girl: Gianna

– 2000-2021 rank: #83 (77,790 newborns named Gianna)
– 1980-1999 rank: #1,888 (284 newborns)
– Positions gained: 1,805

#15. Boy: Wyatt

– 2000-2021 rank: #61 (155,147 newborns named Wyatt)
– 1980-1999 rank: #578 (1,075 newborns)
– Positions gained: 517

#15. Girl: Genesis

– 2000-2021 rank: #94 (68,907 newborns named Genesis)
– 1980-1999 rank: #1,903 (281 newborns)
– Positions gained: 1,809

#14. Boy: Sebastian

– 2000-2021 rank: #57 (158,309 newborns named Sebastian)
– 1980-1999 rank: #605 (998 newborns)
– Positions gained: 548

#14. Girl: Aria

– 2000-2021 rank: #95 (68,836 newborns named Aria)
– 1980-1999 rank: #2,258 (218 newborns)
– Positions gained: 2,163

#13. Boy: Carson

– 2000-2021 rank: #85 (100,522 newborns named Carson)
– 1980-1999 rank: #640 (913 newborns)
– Positions gained: 555

#13. Girl: Isabella

– 2000-2021 rank: #4 (343,238 newborns named Isabella)
– 1980-1999 rank: #2,637 (177 newborns)
– Positions gained: 2,633

#12. Boy: Parker

– 2000-2021 rank: #94 (92,541 newborns named Parker)
– 1980-1999 rank: #652 (877 newborns)
– Positions gained: 558

#12. Girl: Aaliyah

– 2000-2021 rank: #63 (90,154 newborns named Aaliyah)
– 1980-1999 rank: #3,145 (136 newborns)
– Positions gained: 3,082

#11. Boy: Liam

– 2000-2021 rank: #23 (258,778 newborns named Liam)
– 1980-1999 rank: #741 (685 newborns)
– Positions gained: 718

#11. Girl: Makayla

– 2000-2021 rank: #71 (84,618 newborns named Makayla)
– 1980-1999 rank: #3,156 (135 newborns)
– Positions gained: 3,085

#10. Boy: Connor

– 2000-2021 rank: #55 (162,344 newborns named Connor)
– 1980-1999 rank: #837 (560 newborns)
– Positions gained: 782

#10. Girl: Riley

– 2000-2021 rank: #39 (112,112 newborns named Riley)
– 1980-1999 rank: #3,135 (137 newborns)
– Positions gained: 3,096

#9. Boy: Carter

– 2000-2021 rank: #56 (162,162 newborns named Carter)
– 1980-1999 rank: #840 (554 newborns)
– Positions gained: 784

#9. Girl: Peyton

– 2000-2021 rank: #88 (72,456 newborns named Peyton)
– 1980-1999 rank: #3,962 (97 newborns)
– Positions gained: 3,874

#8. Boy: Colton

– 2000-2021 rank: #83 (102,179 newborns named Colton)
– 1980-1999 rank: #940 (453 newborns)
– Positions gained: 857

#8. Girl: Camila

– 2000-2021 rank: #61 (91,579 newborns named Camila)
– 1980-1999 rank: #4,046 (94 newborns)
– Positions gained: 3,985

#7. Boy: Cooper

– 2000-2021 rank: #95 (90,907 newborns named Cooper)
– 1980-1999 rank: #1,085 (350 newborns)
– Positions gained: 990

#7. Girl: Skylar

– 2000-2021 rank: #98 (68,202 newborns named Skylar)
– 1980-1999 rank: #4,776 (74 newborns)
– Positions gained: 4,678

#6. Boy: Grayson

– 2000-2021 rank: #91 (95,437 newborns named Grayson)
– 1980-1999 rank: #1,085 (350 newborns)
– Positions gained: 994

#6. Girl: Madison

– 2000-2021 rank: #6 (303,657 newborns named Madison)
– 1980-1999 rank: #6,494 (48 newborns)
– Positions gained: 6,488

#5. Boy: Aidan

– 2000-2021 rank: #81 (104,426 newborns named Aidan)
– 1980-1999 rank: #1,819 (153 newborns)
– Positions gained: 1,738

#5. Girl: Kennedy

– 2000-2021 rank: #87 (72,898 newborns named Kennedy)
– 1980-1999 rank: #8,301 (32 newborns)
– Positions gained: 8,214

#4. Boy: Brayden

– 2000-2021 rank: #71 (122,393 newborns named Brayden)
– 1980-1999 rank: #3,228 (66 newborns)
– Positions gained: 3,157

#4. Girl: Harper

– 2000-2021 rank: #44 (107,988 newborns named Harper)
– 1980-1999 rank: #8,591 (30 newborns)
– Positions gained: 8,547

#3. Boy: Jaxon

– 2000-2021 rank: #89 (96,598 newborns named Jaxon)
– 1980-1999 rank: #4,249 (44 newborns)
– Positions gained: 4,160

#3. Girl: Zoey

– 2000-2021 rank: #54 (96,787 newborns named Zoey)
– 1980-1999 rank: #9,409 (25 newborns)
– Positions gained: 9,355

#2. Boy: Aiden

– 2000-2021 rank: #31 (229,853 newborns named Aiden)
– 1980-1999 rank: #6,855 (16 newborns)
– Positions gained: 6,824

#2. Girl: Addison

– 2000-2021 rank: #32 (131,269 newborns named Addison)
– 1980-1999 rank: #10,154 (21 newborns)
– Positions gained: 10,122

#1. Boy: Jayden

– 2000-2021 rank: #33 (228,492 newborns named Jayden)
– 1980-1999 rank: #6,984 (15 newborns)
– Positions gained: 6,951

#1. Girl: Nevaeh

– 2000-2021 rank: #64 (89,022 newborns named Nevaeh)
– 1980-1999 rank: Unranked (0 newborns)
– Positions gained: At least 18,679