These were 2016's most popular baby names in Pa. and N.J.
There's been a bit of a reshuffling among the most popular names for babies born in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Nationally, Creed surged in popularity.
There's been a bit of a reshuffling among the most popular names for babies born in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.
While Liam was the top name for boys born in New Jersey for the second year in a row, the most-common name for Pennsylvania boys and girls born in both states changed over in 2016, according to new data from the Social Security Administration.
Mia jumped four spots on New Jersey's list to tie with Olivia as the most popular name for Garden State baby girls last year. Olivia moved up from fourth in 2015. Those picks were followed by Emma, which had been the top choice for new parents in 2015.
In Pennsylvania, Noah – by just one birth – edged out Liam as the most popular name for baby boys, after having ranked third on the previous year's list. Mason, the 2015 leader, was third in the Keystone State last year. For girls, Emma, second in 2015, was first last year, while the previous top choice of Olivia moved dropped to second.
The top baby names in each state for 2016 were (parenthesis indicate the number of babies given that name):
Pennsylvania girls
Emma (747)
Olivia (726)
Ava (668)
Charlotte (636)
Sophia (560)
Isabella (481)
Harper (445)
Mia (428)
Abigail (412)
Emily (410)
Pennsylvania boys
Noah (712)
Liam (711)
Mason (661)
Benjamin (638)
James (588)
Michael (577)
Jacob (569)
Logan (511)
Owen (511)Lucas (508)
New Jersey girls
Mia (530)
Olivia (530)Emma (506)
Sophia (471)
Isabella (469)
Ava (463)
Charlotte (386)
Emily (347)
Abigail (310)
Madison (307)
New Jersey boys
Liam (573)
Noah (545)
Matthew (542)
Michael (509)
Jacob (490)
Joseph (469)
Lucas (436)
Dylan (431)
Mason (430)
Alexander (424)
Nationally, Noah was the most-common name for baby boys in 2016, while Emma was tops for girls. Other nationwide trends for 2016 included a sharp drop in the number of baby girls named Caitlyn (and various spellings of that name) in the year after Caitlyn Jenner announced her new name and gender, and a big uptick in the number of boys named Creed, following the late 2015 release of "Creed," the latest film in the Philadelphia-centric "Rocky" franchise.
For boys born last year, Creed had the second-largest increase in popularity, moving up 370 spots on the list from 2015. Still, with just 206 births, the name only ranked 982nd nationally. Creed didn't crack the top 100 list in either Pennsylvania or New Jersey, so data on the number of local babies born with the name wasn't available.
Interested in how this year's top names compare to other recent lists? These were parents' top picks in 2015 and 2014.