The 10 most popular baby names of 2024, according to the Bump

One of the first choices a parent needs to make for their kid is assigning them a name. While moms and dads may feel like their choice of name is very personal to them and their little one, the reality is that some names are more popular each year than others — and often, that has to do with what names are in the zeitgeist. And that includes some from surprising sources. The Bump, a pregnancy and parenting website, just released its list of their top baby names compiled based on the biggest traffic performers. This year, Kai topped its list with Liam in second. The full top ten is as follows:

1. Kai

2. Liam

3. Amelia

4. Olivia

5. Rowan

6. Noah

7. Mia

8. James

9. Asher

10. Eliana

Kai — which, in Hawaiian, means “sea” — first emerged in the top 1,000 baby names in the United States in 1979 but didn’t crack the top 100 until 2019, according to BabyCenter. Now, however, a lot of people are finding this gender-neutral name has a nice ring to it — and that may be because there are quite a few famous people with it.

There’s Kai Cenat, a popular Twitch streamer and content creator, who has more than 14.7 million followers. Kai Trump, President-elect Donald Trump’s 17-year-old granddaughter and an emerging golf influencer, made a splashy public appearance at the Republican National Convention this year. Then there’s South Korean singer Kai, a member of the boy band Exo, who has more than 14 million Instagram followers.

What other names were popular this year?

Pop culture has long influenced baby names — like in 2011, when the name Arya grew in popularity following the debut of Game of Thrones and 2024 was no exception. Pop star Sabrina Carpenter had a major year with her Short n’ Sweet Tour, and according to the Bump, so did her first name as a baby option — the baby name page on the Bump’s site received 75% more visits this year.

Ashlee Neuman, content director at The Bump, tells Yahoo Life that “the Taylor Swift effect is so powerful, even the names she mentions in her lyrics make an impression.” Clara (“Clara Bow”), Lucy (“The Tortured Poets Department”) and Aimee (“thanK you aIMee”), all names featured on The Tortured Poets Department album, climbed between 5% and 10% in popularity since the album’s release in April, Neuman says. Meanwhile, Cassandra (“Cassandra”) surged the most, ranking 37% higher in page visits on the Bump.

Fans of BookTok already know that “romantasy” (aka books where the romance and fantasy are blended in equal measure, à la Sarah J. Maas’s A Court of Thorns and Roses) is very in. That vibe is also now common in baby names, says Neuman, who notes “that 20% of the top 40 baby names on the Bump are ethereal baby names.” That includes names like Arlo, Raiden, Aurora and Adonis.

“These names do follow a persisting pattern of monikers that hint at a rosier reality or grand escape — and given the tumult that families have experienced in recent times, whether environmental, political, financial or otherwise, it makes sense why,” Neuman notes.

What names are tried and true?

Sometimes, names transcend trends — like the name Olivia, which Neuman notes “has been the number one most popular baby girl name since 2019 and certainly appears here to stay.” Meanwhile, Oliver has claimed the third spot since 2019.

“Both are more traditional names with poignant meanings for today’s families: Of Latin origin, they mean ‘olive tree,’ an enduring symbol of peace and friendship and a reference to parents’ hope of future tranquility and happiness for their children,” says Neuman.