Jack was the most popular name for baby boys born in Ireland last year, topping the baby names poll for the third year running.
Sophie was the most popular girls’ name, climbing from sixth place in 2008. Some 635 girls were named Sophie in 2009, five more than Ava, the second most popular girls name according to figures released today by the Central Statistics Office.
More than 1,000 babies were named Jack last year, 134 more than the number of boys named Seán, the second most popular boys’ name.
The top five boys’ names in 2009 (Jack, Seán, Daniel, Conor and James) also made up the top five in 2007 and 2008. Four of the top five boys’ names (Jack, Sean, Conor and James) have been in the top five since 1998, with only their order changing from year to year.
While Emma and Sarah have been in the top five since 1998, this is the first time Grace has appeared in the top five. Ava entered the top 5 in 2008 and Sophie has been in the top five twice since 1998, in 2006 and 2007.
Twilight fans seem to have been inspired to name their children after the characters.Isabella, the full name of Kristen Stewart’s character, Bella is ranked 70th on the list of most popular names, while Isabelle is ranked 32nd. Jakub is ranked 58th.
A number of Polish names also featured on the top 100 list including Szymon, Patryk, Kacper, Zuzanna and Oliwia.
Patryk, Szymon, Zuzanna and Oliwia achieved the most growth in popularity between 2004 and 2009. Patryk jumped 856 places from a ranking of 953 in 2004 to the 97th spot in 2009.