The INE has announced the names that parents have chosen the most for their newborn babies in Spain in 2021. They have also detailed which are the most popular names in each of the autonomous communities of our country.
After analyzing the trend of most popular names in Castilla-La Mancha, this time we talk about the most popular names in Catalonia for boys and girls, also detailing their meaning.
Most popular boy names in Catalonia (and their meaning)
The 10 names that parents in Catalonia have chosen the most for their newborn babies are, in order:
- Marc – Catalan form of Marcos, which is from Latin Marcus, meaning “hallowed to Mars”, the Roman god of war.
- Jan : hypocoristic of Joan, Catalan form of Juan, Hebrew name meaning “God is merciful.”
- Nil : is the Catalan form of Nilo , name of Greek origin ‘Neilos’ and which derived in Latin to ‘Nilus’ in reference to the name of the great African river.
- Pol : Catalan form of Pablo, name of Latin origin, meaning “small, humble.”
- Leo : the most popular boy’s name in Spain in the last five years. It derives from Latin and is a variant of Leon, it symbolizes the fierceness of this animal and also power and justice.
- Àlex/Álex : variant of Alexander, means “protector or winner of men”.
- Martí : Catalan form of Martín, which is derived from the name of the Roman god Mars.
- Pau : like Pol, it comes from the Latin Paulus and means “small and humble man”.
- Biel: Catalan diminutive of Gabriel, meaning “the strength of God.”
- Lucas: comes from the Latin Lucas, and in turn from the Hellenistic Greek Loukâs, which means the great Lūcĭus, a Latin name that apparently means “he who stands out for his brilliance”, “he who was born at dawn”.
Nil and Leo, the trendy names
Nil has risen one position with respect to the ranking of names from the previous year in Catalonia, ranking third above Pol, which indicates that it is a trending name that more and more parents choose for their offspring.
For his part, Leo is one of the undisputed fashion names , both in Catalonia and in the rest of Spain, where he ranks fourth in popularity at the national level.
For his part, Lucas , who is in fifth place at the national level, has also slipped into the top 10 in Catalonia.
Most popular girl names in Catalonia (and their meaning)
The names most chosen by parents in Catalonia for their newborn daughters are, in order:
- Júlia/Julia : of Latin origin “Iulus”/”Iulia”, name with which the members of the Roman Julia family were identified. It means “consecrated to Jupiter”.
- Martina : feminine form of Martín, of Latin origin and meaning “consecrated or related to the god Mars”.
- Mia: name of Hebrew origin, diminutive of Maria.
- Emma : of Germanic origin, it means “Great”, “Strong”, “Immense”, “Powerful”.
- Lucía : of Latin origin “lux”, its meaning is “She who carries the light” or “She who is born of light”, in reference to girls who are born at dawn.
- Sofia : of Greek origin and its meaning is “wisdom” or “she who possesses wisdom”.
- Ona – Of Gaelic origin meaning “ash tree”. It also comes from the abbreviation of Mariona, in turn a variant of María. Also, the term ona in Catalan means wave.
- Mary : of Hebrew origin “maryam”, its meaning is “the chosen one”, “the one loved by God”.
- Paula : Latin origin “Paulus” and variant of Paola. It means “The minor”, “The small one” or “That one of small size”.
- Aina : variant of Anna, means “compassionate and beneficial”.
Julia and Mia, favorites in Catalonia
As for the name of girls in Catalonia, Julia is the absolute favorite if we compare it with the national ranking, where it occupies sixth place. While Mía occupies the third position while at the national level we do not find it in the Top 10, but in position 16, being also one of the trending names that parents choose the most for their newborns throughout the country.
For their part, Ona and Aina are also very popular names in Catalonia that we do not find in the ranking of the 10 most chosen names at a national level.
