Emma has been dethroned as the most popular name for newborn girls in Belgium for the first time in 16 years, according to figures by the Belgian statistical office, Statbel.
After 16 years of being the most popular baby name for girls, Emma has been replaced by Olivia, which was the most popular in both Flanders and Wallonia in 2019.
651 newborn babies were named Olivia last year, which is almost 100 more than in 2018, and also significantly more than the 563 babies who were named Emma, which has been the most popular first name for girls since 2003.
Mila (518), Louise (515) and Alice (407) made up the rest of the top 5.
"First names such as Jolie, Lovely and Melody were given only five times last year," Statbel said.
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For newborn boys, Arthur was the most popular first name for the second year in a row in 2019, according to Statbel.
Arthur has been in fashion for a few years now, ending up in the top 10 for a few years now, with 610 newborn boys carrying the name.
Liam (575 times) was the second most popular and Louis (549) came in third. Noah (545) and Adam (504) were fourth and fifth, respectively.
"Zinedine, Rares, Priam, Olaf or more musical first names such as Jazz and Django are first names that were given only 5 times to boys born in 2019," Statbel said.
Maïthé Chini
The Brussels Times
