As we rounded out 2018, we learned that the most popular baby names of the year around the United States were Sophia and Jackson. What about right here in the Northland? The Minnesota Department of Health revealed (via Duluth News Tribune) that we bucked the trends to a large degree - especially with boy names.

The information details births during 2018 from the three regional birthplaces of Essentia Health in Duluth, Virginia, and Deer River. Of the over 1,600 babies born through the year in these facilities, a lot of the names given didn't match up with the national trends. Only 3 of the top 10 boys names made the local top 10, while 6 of the top 10 national girls names made the local top 10.

Here are the most popular names given in 2018 in the Northland (compared to their national rank from BabyCenter):

Boys - Locally Ranked

  1. Henry (#32 nationally)
  2. Jack (#26 nationally)
  3. Leo (#28 nationally)
  4. William (#25 nationally)
  5. Jaxon (unranked in top 100 nationally)
  6. Oliver (#9 nationally)
  7. Elijah (#10 nationally)
  8. Jackson (#1 nationally
  9. John (#42 nationally)
  10. Theodore (#96 nationally)

Girls - Locally Ranked

  1. Olivia (#2 nationally)
  2. Amelia (#8 nationally)
  3. Aurora (#55 nationally)
  4. Charlotte (#13 nationally)
  5. Harper (#14 nationally)
  6. Layla (#10 nationally)
  7. Ava (#4 nationally)
  8. Emma (#3 nationally)
  9. Lucy (#75 nationally)
  10. Isabella (#5 nationally)

One trend that is true not only locally, but also nationally, is that of seeing a lot of "classic" names toward the top of the popularity scale. According to BabyCenter, the top 10 names nationally of 2018 are as follows:

Boys - Nationally Ranked

  1. Jackson
  2. Liam
  3. Noah
  4. Aiden
  5. Caden
  6. Grayson
  7. Lucas
  8. Mason
  9. Oliver
  10. Elijah

Girls - Nationally Ranked

  1. Sophia
  2. Olivia
  3. Emma
  4. Ava
  5. Isabella
  6. Aria
  7. Riley
  8. Amelia
  9. Mia
  10. Layla

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