California is a state on the west coast of the United States. It is the most populous and the third largest U.S. state by area. The birth rate in California is around 60 per 1,000 women ages 15-44. The most distinctly Californian names in the Top 10 are Camila (5th in California, 15th in U.S.), Mateo (3rd in California, 26th in U.S.) and Sebastian (4th in California, 18th in U.S.).
Baby names in California are on the whole similar to the most popular names in other states. There are differences around the country but names topping the list are more or less the same. The most popular baby name in California is Noah for boys and Olivia for girls.
In this article you will first find a table that explores how popular names in the state of California have changed over time. We have also published a table of the 100 most popular names in California for births in 2019 – we’ve provided this list for both girls and boys.
Popular Baby Names in California Changes Over Time
In the tables below you can see how popular baby names have changed in California over time.
| California Girl Names | |||
| 2019 | 2000 | 1980 | |
| 1 | Olivia | Emily | Jennifer |
| 2 | Emma | Ashley | Melissa |
| 3 | Mia | Samantha | Jessica |
| 4 | Sophia | Jessica | Sarah |
| 5 | Camila | Jennifer | Michelle |
| California Boy Names | |||
| 2019 | 2000 | 1980 | |
| 1 | Noah | Daniel | Michael |
| 2 | Liam | Anthony | David |
| 3 | Mateo | Jose | Christopher |
| 4 | Sebastian | Andrew | Daniel |
| 5 | Ethan | Michael | Jason |
California Baby Names
In the tables below we will present the 100 most popular names in California given to girls and boys born in 2019. The data is based on Social Security card application data.
Boy Names in California
Below are the most popular boy names in California given to boys born in 2019. The number in the “count” column shows the number of babies given the name.
| Rank | Boy name | Count |
| 1 | Noah | 2,668 |
| 2 | Liam | 2,387 |
| 3 | Mateo | 2,209 |
| 4 | Sebastian | 2,143 |
| 5 | Ethan | 2,09 |
| 6 | Julian | 1,85 |
| 7 | Alexander | 1,825 |
| 8 | Benjamin | 1,742 |
| 9 | Daniel | 1,739 |
| 10 | Lucas | 1,708 |
| 11 | Jacob | 1,646 |
| 12 | Oliver | 1,596 |
| 13 | Matthew | 1,557 |
| 14 | Elijah | 1,507 |
| 15 | Jayden | 1,402 |
| 16 | Aiden | 1,394 |
| 17 | Santiago | 1,351 |
| 18 | James | 1,347 |
| 19 | Isaac | 1,313 |
| 20 | Logan | 1,268 |
| 21 | David | 1,247 |
| 22 | Michael | 1,229 |
| 23 | Mason | 1,227 |
| 24 | Anthony | 1,219 |
| 25 | Dylan | 1,197 |
| 26 | William | 1,184 |
| 27 | Adrian | 1,183 |
| 28 | Leo | 1,169 |
| 29 | Nathan | 1,15 |
| 30 | Angel | 1,115 |
| 31 | Aaron | 1,08 |
| 32 | Leonardo | 1,064 |
| 33 | Levi | 1,047 |
| 34 | Andrew | 1,042 |
| 35 | Joseph | 1,041 |
| 36 | Luke | 1,038 |
| 37 | Samuel | 997 |
| 38 | Elias | 991 |
| 39 | Ezra | 991 |
| 40 | Damian | 989 |
| 41 | Ezekiel | 975 |
| 42 | Isaiah | 917 |
| 43 | Henry | 910 |
| 44 | Jose | 890 |
| 45 | Josiah | 890 |
| 46 | Christopher | 885 |
| 47 | Gabriel | 871 |
| 48 | Ryan | 870 |
| 49 | Jack | 857 |
| 50 | Jackson | 850 |
| 51 | Jonathan | 834 |
| 52 | Owen | 820 |
| 53 | Joshua | 803 |
| 54 | Diego | 770 |
| 55 | Theodore | 765 |
| 56 | Emiliano | 751 |
| 57 | Caleb | 749 |
| 58 | Dominic | 743 |
| 59 | Christian | 737 |
| 60 | Roman | 723 |
| 61 | Gael | 720 |
| 62 | Wyatt | 711 |
| 63 | Ian | 702 |
| 64 | Evan | 701 |
| 65 | Xavier | 684 |
| 66 | Ivan | 677 |
| 67 | Nicholas | 676 |
| 68 | Jesus | 672 |
| 69 | Adam | 663 |
| 70 | Eli | 654 |
| 71 | Jeremiah | 654 |
| 72 | Jaxon | 648 |
| 73 | Luis | 643 |
| 74 | John | 636 |
| 75 | Luca | 617 |
| 76 | Axel | 610 |
| 77 | Jason | 580 |
| 78 | Asher | 574 |
| 79 | Carlos | 573 |
| 80 | Carter | 569 |
| 81 | Austin | 566 |
| 82 | Thomas | 566 |
| 83 | Jordan | 565 |
| 84 | Miles | 558 |
| 85 | Maverick | 557 |
| 86 | Grayson | 545 |
| 87 | Juan | 540 |
| 88 | Hunter | 536 |
| 89 | Kai | 530 |
| 90 | Hudson | 527 |
| 91 | Robert | 522 |
| 92 | Vincent | 518 |
| 93 | Lorenzo | 505 |
| 94 | Maximiliano | 500 |
| 95 | Nolan | 499 |
| 96 | Charles | 498 |
| 97 | Jameson | 498 |
| 98 | Miguel | 483 |
| 99 | Nicolas | 482 |
| 100 | Nathaniel | 478 |
Girl Names in California
Below are the most popular girl names in California given to girls born in 2019. The number in the “count” column shows the number of babies given the name.
| Rank | Girl name | Count |
| 1 | Olivia | 2,592 |
| 2 | Emma | 2,385 |
| 3 | Mia | 2,351 |
| 4 | Sophia | 2,088 |
| 5 | Camila | 2,056 |
| 6 | Isabella | 2,005 |
| 7 | Luna | 1,494 |
| 8 | Emily | 1,459 |
| 9 | Ava | 1,405 |
| 10 | Sofia | 1,401 |
| 11 | Victoria | 1,318 |
| 12 | Abigail | 1,286 |
| 13 | Amelia | 1,271 |
| 14 | Charlotte | 1,213 |
| 15 | Mila | 1,213 |
| 16 | Evelyn | 1,163 |
| 17 | Penelope | 1,103 |
| 18 | Aria | 1,036 |
| 19 | Scarlett | 954 |
| 20 | Ella | 894 |
| 21 | Elizabeth | 871 |
| 22 | Chloe | 870 |
| 23 | Avery | 827 |
| 24 | Zoe | 820 |
| 25 | Valentina | 782 |
| 26 | Zoey | 754 |
| 27 | Emilia | 741 |
| 28 | Genesis | 735 |
| 29 | Violet | 727 |
| 30 | Bella | 717 |
| 31 | Layla | 717 |
| 32 | Harper | 716 |
| 33 | Aaliyah | 698 |
| 34 | Natalia | 691 |
| 35 | Grace | 688 |
| 36 | Ellie | 677 |
| 37 | Audrey | 676 |
| 38 | Maya | 675 |
| 39 | Ariana | 663 |
| 40 | Lily | 663 |
| 41 | Samantha | 650 |
| 42 | Leah | 644 |
| 43 | Elena | 643 |
| 44 | Riley | 642 |
| 45 | Madison | 633 |
| 46 | Hannah | 629 |
| 47 | Eliana | 621 |
| 48 | Ximena | 608 |
| 49 | Natalie | 604 |
| 50 | Delilah | 585 |
| 51 | Aurora | 579 |
| 52 | Gianna | 567 |
| 53 | Hazel | 552 |
| 54 | Stella | 543 |
| 55 | Hailey | 539 |
| 56 | Allison | 517 |
| 57 | Isla | 512 |
| 58 | Leilani | 512 |
| 59 | Melanie | 503 |
| 60 | Everly | 499 |
| 61 | Naomi | 485 |
| 62 | Alina | 474 |
| 63 | Aubrey | 474 |
| 64 | Eleanor | 461 |
| 65 | Eva | 461 |
| 66 | Jade | 460 |
| 67 | Claire | 455 |
| 68 | Alice | 443 |
| 69 | Ruby | 443 |
| 70 | Valeria | 442 |
| 71 | Nora | 441 |
| 72 | Athena | 440 |
| 73 | Valerie | 440 |
| 74 | Arya | 428 |
| 75 | Alexa | 425 |
| 76 | Andrea | 425 |
| 77 | Melody | 423 |
| 78 | Brooklyn | 409 |
| 79 | Lucy | 409 |
| 80 | Savannah | 402 |
| 81 | Sophie | 399 |
| 82 | Arianna | 397 |
| 83 | Ivy | 385 |
| 84 | Liliana | 381 |
| 85 | Jasmine | 370 |
| 86 | Maria | 369 |
| 87 | Madeline | 366 |
| 88 | Kamila | 357 |
| 89 | Sarah | 356 |
| 90 | Amaya | 355 |
| 91 | Katherine | 355 |
| 92 | Nova | 354 |
| 93 | Adeline | 353 |
| 94 | Alexandra | 334 |
| 95 | Isabel | 334 |
| 96 | Kaylee | 334 |
| 97 | Nevaeh | 329 |
| 98 | Anna | 325 |
| 99 | Ashley | 325 |
| 100 | Julia | 324 |
Summary of Popular Names in California
The name given to most newborns during the year was Noah for boys and Olivia for girls. If you’d like to know what the name trends are in different states, you can find all the states HERE. You can also use the search function to find a state of your choice.