The 5 most popular festive baby names this Christmas – and the ones on the rise

03 December 2023 , 07:12

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Using the seasons is a popular way of being inspired to find your baby's name (Image: Getty Images)

It must be tempting for many parents when thinking of a name to be inspired by the season they have their child in and Christmas time is no different.

There are so many monikers that can come from the festive season, but Nursery retailer Kiddies Kingdom have analysed three years of Office for National Statistics data to reveal the UK’s most popular festive-themed baby names and which ones we could be seeing more of this Christmas.

Some have religious and biblical connotations, while others are inspired by the weather in this season and often the trees and plants we associate with this time of year. One that is based on a plant is Ivy.

There's plenty of things to do with Christmas to help find a baby name (Getty Images)

This is a name of English origin inspired by the evergreen climbing vine and while Holly may come first in the popular Christmas hymn, Ivy takes the top spot when it comes to the most used festive baby names, with 6,569 babies being given the name between 2019 and 2021.

One with an obvious connection to the Bible is Joseph. Its roots are in Hebrew and translates to God will increase. While the name of Jesus’ earthly father peaked in popularity in the year 2000, it’s still highly used, with 4,422 babies receiving it in the last three years.

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Another name of Hebrew origin, Gabriel meaning God is my strength. The angel Gabriel plays a key part in the Nativity, being the heavenly messenger who reveals Mary will soon give birth to the son of God. The angel is also the herald of visions, messenger of God and one of the angels of higher rank. He makes God's message understandable to people and helps them to accept it with a pure heart. And 2,560 babies included in the data shared the angel’s name.

This botanical-based name – Holly – has been in use since the early 20th century. The holly tree represents the thorny crown of Jesus and has a major association with Christmas.

The shrub also has links to pagan rituals and Celtic mythology, where it is viewed as a token of peace and good fortune. This is a popular name all year round and according to the data, 1986 people favoured it.

Some have religious and biblical connotations, while others are inspired by the weather in this season (Getty Images)

Given its association with a certain jolly man in a red suit, you might expect Nicholas to feature higher up the list, but it comes in at five, with 1032 people using it. The name has Greek origins and means “victory of the people.” The Greek word nike means “victory” and laos means “people.”

Nicholas is often associated with Saint Nicholas of Myra, a fourth century Greek Christian bishop who was alive during the time of the Roman Empire. He is known as the saint of children who gave away all of his inherited wealth and traveled the countryside helping the poor and sick. His legend forms the basis of the figure known as Santa Claus.

There are also a number of names that are starting to rise in popularity and while we've had Gabriel there's also the feminine version of the name Gabrielle. As with the masculine version, it means God is my strength and this name, which is of French origin showed the biggest average yearly increase in use at 46 percent.

It's been a famous, but actually quite sad song in American fokelore since the 19th century but Clementine is of English origin and means gentle and merciful. Its seasonal links come from the use of the clementine fruit in Christmas stockings, which is said to signify the generosity of St Nicholas. The name has had an 18 percent average yearly increase in its use across the past three years.

Originating from the French word for Christmas, Noelle is the feminine or gender-neutral version of Noel. The name Noelle means Christmas. It is the feminine form of the masculine name Noël, which is derived from the Latin phrase 'natalis dies Domini', meaning the Lord’s birthday.

While some baby name definitions consider it to mean ‘born on Christmas Day’ many December babies are gifted the name as a nod to the festive season as a whole. With the name showing a 12 percent average yearly increase in use, we’re likely to see many more babies with this Christmassy name being born this year.

Steven Smith