Baby Name Trends 2026

Updated Fri Oct 10 2025

Baby name trends 2026 are propelled by escapism.

Amid bleak headlines and growing uncertainty, parents are actively seeking names that remind them of anything but our current environment. When the news is too heavy to bear, they turn into their favorite forms of entertainment.

After losing themselves in an epic romantasy series, historical novel, anime adaptation, or reality TV show, many emerge with fresh inspiration for their baby name lists, choosing names that feel fanciful, nostalgic, or full of hope.

Today's trendiest baby names may be influenced by invented worlds, idealized pasts, and imagined futures, but parents choose them with the hope that their bearers will help make the real world a better place.

Here, Nameberry’s top 10 baby name trends for 2026:

1. Ancient Civilizations

In 2026, parents are unearthing baby name relics: names from ancient civilizations. These serious, often substantial choices evoke emperors and warriors, intellectuals and the ancient literati.

The parents using Ancient Civilizations names seek to connect their children back to history. This may be a family's own history and heritage, as with many Mesoamerican and ancient Asian names. For others, Ancient Civilizations names are a way to cope with an uncertain future by rewinding to a romanticized past, common with the use of Ancient Greek and Roman names.

This aestheticization of heroes and ancient lifestyles will be bolstered by cultural events such as the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy and Christopher Nolan's much-anticipated film adaptation of The Odyssey.

The 2026 parents drawn to Ancient Civilizations names have high hopes for their children and the future of our planet. To them, a young Marcella or Arath is poised to become the next great thinker, creative, or leader of our age.

Names From Ancient Civilizations

2. Showgirl Names

By now, it's clear: Taylor Swift is a baby name influencer. She's revived antiques like Marjorie and Dorothea, introduced Evermore to the baby name charts, and boosted the -tt ending girl names of her soon-to-be nieces.

Swift's latest album, The Life of a Showgirl, was recently released and is expected to impact 2026 baby names. Ophelia and Honey will certainly get a boost from Swift's latest album, and might we see some baby girls called Opalite?

Beyond names from Swift's track titles, The Life of a Showgirl will inspire parents to embrace maximalist, extravagantly feminine names for their daughters. On the rise include names of real-life starlets, like Marilyn Monroe and Farrah Fawcett, as well as fictional showgirls like Roxie Hart and Nomi Malone.

What unites all of these names is sparkle, with a hint of grit. Showgirl names appear to be all about glitz and glam, but scratch the surface and you'll find a wealth of strength behind them, much like Taylor Swift herself.

Showgirl Names

3. Soulful Names

Previously evergreen biblical names like David and Joseph are now finding themselves more susceptible to trends, while the parents who may have once chosen them are turning towards modern names with subtle spiritual ties.

Soulful names reference spirituality but are not biblical or overtly religious. Some choices, like Olive and River, are commonly used by secular parents, who may not even be aware of the names’ spiritual interpretations.

For parents choosing these names with soulfulness in mind, that’s the appeal. The subtlety allows for individual interpretations of soulful names — even within the same household. One parent may appreciate Cedar for its connection to nature, while another may enjoy it for its biblical symbolism.

Likewise, Soulful Names are designed to be flexible for their bearers. A child named Dove or Purpose may grow up attending church, but later identify with the more literal meaning of their name.

Soulful Names

4. A-OK Boomer Names

In our first book, Beyond Jennifer & Jason, Nameberry coined The 100 Year Rule — the now-ubiquitous baby name theory positing that baby names come back into style every 100 years. This year, we're eating our words. Some of the trendiest baby names are about 30 years ahead of schedule.

Influencers, artists, and other tastemakers have recently welcomed babies with names like Patti, Beverly, and Bruce — names that peaked in popularity among the Baby Boomer generation.

A-OK Boomer Names are the latest iteration of clunky-cool, counterculture baby names favored by trendsetting parents. Some babies will be named directly after their Boomer grandparents, but many more will be called Nancy, Wayne, and Judith simply out of their parents' appreciation of 1950s names and glamorized post-war era.

The 2026 parents who choose A-OK Boomer Names appreciate this juxtaposition between a fresh, adorable baby and an out-of-step, grandma- or grandpa-style name. To them, the charm lies in the fact that Darla or Ronald might be the last name you'd expect on a newborn.

Some of the top midcentury names — like Mary, Linda, and John — are still trending down for now. These are the Baby Boomer names showing signs of life for 2026 babies.

A-OK Boomer Names

5. Romantasy Names

Cassian has been one of the fastest-rising names in recent years, ignited by the popular romance-fantasy series A Court of Thorns and Roses. In 2026, the genre is extending its reach.

The Romantasy Names trending this year include some character names from well-known series like ACOTAR and Fourth Wing. But this trend is primarily driven by names that sound like they could be the hero or heroine of a romantic fantasy novel.

When naming characters, romantasy authors draw from a few central themes. From classic romance novels, they borrow strongly gendered, fanciful choices. But instead of Latinate names like Gabriella and Sebastian, these authors are influenced by Welsh and Scandinavian roots, more in line with true fantasy novelists like J.R.R. Tolkien.

Romantasy baby namers follow the same tropes. They are drawn to ornate names with an otherworldly aura and heavy European influence. Mostly made up of the most ethereal archaic choices like Oriane and Emrys, Romantasy Names also include newly-minted options like Lilivere and Leontel.

We'll be watching these names in the years to come. They'll soon show up on your child's preschool roster — and in your next favorite romantasy read.

Romantasy Names

6. Vowel Hiatus Names

Who needs consonants anyway? The trendiest sound in baby names for 2026 is the vowel hiatus: the enunciation of two distinct adjoining vowels.

Just a few years ago, liquid consonants like L and M were all the rage, with choices like Bellamy, Milo, and Milani climbing the charts. Today, parents are paring back consonant sounds — using one, maybe two — and instead, letting abutting vowels do the talking.

The consonants that are used tend to be soft and glide-enhancing, like common choices L, M, N, and R. They fade into the background while the vowel hiatus shines.

Vowel Hiatus names Deia, Leonie, and Eziah are among the fastest-rising on Nameberry so far this year. Celebrities have taken strongly to this trend, recently exemplified by Milo Ventimiglia's daughter Ke'ala, Imani Hakim's son Kazuo, and Lele Pons's daughter Eloísa.

Names With a Vowel Hiatus

7. Number Names

Baby names are becoming more unique, and with that, we are seeing fewer Juniors and children named directly after ancestors. Contemporary honor names are more creative, with parents choosing names related to the honoree's own name, or inspired by a loved one's birthstone, favorite color, or hobbies.

Number Names, too, are a fresh suggestion of lineage. Instead of naming a son James Anthony IV, today's parents are putting Four on the birth certificate. A name like Una or Primo can suggest a firstborn child, while Cinco could do double duty, honoring Spanish or Latin American heritage and a son's position as the fifth member of the family.

Kourtney Kardashian and Travis Barker recently followed this logic when they named their son Rocky Thirteen, in part because he is the thirteenth grandchild in the Kardashian family.

Even without connections to birth order or forebears, Number Names are trending for 2026. Extremely large numbers like Million and Billion have joined the charts in recent years, and Number Names with pop culture connections, like Forty, Eleven, and Seven are poised for greater success.

Number Names

8. Straight Out of Utah

Previously relegated to "tragedeigh" forums, Utah baby names are now commanding respect — and imitation.

The recent cultural obsession with all things Utah, from Secret Lives of Mormon Wives and "Mom Tok" to The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City, has led to an equal fascination with the state's distinctive baby names.

Utah parents are at the forefront of baby naming. They are the first to revive forgotten vintage names like Dottie and Elden, while also innovating completely new choices by adapting word and place names (Valley, Zealand) and coining creative spellings and brand-new names (Bodee, Scotlyn).

Of course, not all Utah names will break out of the confines of the state. Distinctively Mormon choices like Hyrum and Talmage are likely to stay that way. But these are the Utah names that will gain national recognition in 2026.

Straight Out of Utah Names

9. Anime Names

Anime names have been a microtrend since the beginning of the decade, bubbling under the surface, but never quite finding widespread success. In 2026, anime names are finally breaking into the mainstream.

Fueling the trend is a surge of travel to Japan and the proliferation of anime on streaming platforms like Netflix. Their breakout hit is KPOP Demon Hunters, a film that takes inspiration from anime and Korean dramas. Names from the movie, including Mira and Jinu, will rise, but the biggest hit will be Rumi.

America wasn't quite ready for Rumi when Beyoncé used it for her daughter in 2017, but KPOP Demon Hunters will be the catalyst that the name needs to make it onto birth certificates.

Like Rumi, the anime names trending for 2026 are streamlined choices. They build off our 2023 trend, Traveling Lite Names, of short, easily-understood names with international appeal. While Anime Names are primarily Japanese in origin, the less culturally distinct among them will be embraced by anime fans from a multitude of backgrounds.

Anime Names

10. Brit Lit Names

2026 will see the TV and film adaptations of British Literature classics such as Wuthering Heights, Sense & Sensibility, and Pride and Prejudice — the latter adapted for television by Dolly Alderton, darling of the UK publishing world.

The renewed interest in these quintessentially English stories will spark a fervor for British literary names both past and present. Names of iconic characters, including Great Expectations' Estella and Atonement's Briony, will see greater use, along with stylish literary surnames Darcy, Crusoe, and Eyre.

New parents in 2026 will also take inspiration from the authors themselves. Bronte, already on the rise in the UK, will cross the pond, along with contemporary British author names Kazuo, Dolly, and Zadie.

Brit Lit Names

Let us know what you think! Share your thoughts on our 2026 baby name trends in the forums:

About the Author

Sophie Kihm

Sophie Kihm's Personal Website

Sophie Kihm has been writing for Nameberry since 2015. She has contributed stories on the top 2020s names, Gen Z names, and cottagecore baby names. Sophie is Nameberry’s resident Name Guru to the Stars, where she suggests names for celebrity babies. She also manages the Nameberry Instagram and Pinterest.

Sophie Kihm's articles on names have run on People, Today, The Huffington Post, and more. She has been quoted as a name expert by The Washington Post, People, The Huffington Post, and more. You can follow her personally on Instagram or Pinterest, or contact her at sophie@nameberry.com. Sophie lives in Chicago.