The most common boy’s name in the United Kingdom for 2014 is now Muhammad — and a couple of other names of Arabian descent are lighting up the girls’ top 10 list, too.
Muhammad, for boys, made a giant leap in popularity in recent months, soaring 27 spots from 2013 to the number one name in 2014, the Daily Mail reported.
Nur made a first-time appearance on the girl’s list this year, debuting at number 29. Maryam, meanwhile, jumped nearly 60 spots to number 35 on the most popular girls’ name list for 2014.
“With the increase of Arabic names, the top 100 shows the ever-increasing diversity of the U.K. today,” Sarah Redshaw, the managing editor for BabyCentre, told the Mail.
The top five in girls were, in order, Sophia, Emily, Lily, Olivia and Amelia. In boys, after Muhammad came Oliver, Jack, Noah and Jacob.
• Cheryl K. Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com.
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