Every year Idescat (Institut Catalá d’Estadistica de Catalunya) compiles statistical lists of the names most chosen by parents for their newborn babies in Catalonia .
According to data from 2020, the last year for which statistics are available, we can find out the 40 most popular names for boys and girls.
Most popular boy names in Catalonia and their meaning
The 20 most popular names in Catalonia for boys , in order, are:
- 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.”
- Pol : Catalan form of Pablo, name of Latin origin, meaning “small, humble.”
- 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.
- 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.
- Biel: Catalan diminutive of Gabriel, meaning “the strength of God.”
- Pau : like Pol, it comes from the Latin Paulus and means “small and humble man”.
- 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”.
- Hugo: of Germanic origin, it means “intelligent”, “lucid”, “insightful”.
- Liam : comes from the Irish and means “firm protection”.
- Bruno: name of Germanic origin that means “shield or cuirass”. The powerful meaning of this name makes it more and more chosen.
- Eric/Èric/Éric : derives from the name Eiríkr, which comes from the first generation Old Norse. Its meaning is “sole ruler”.
- Arnau: Catalan form of Arnold, meaning “mighty as eagles.”
- Enzo – is an Italian given name, meaning “the lord of his home or his country”.
- Max : diminutive of Máximo or Maximiliano. From its Latin origin derives its meaning “the greatest”.
- Aleix: Catalan form of Alejo, variant of the name Alejandro, its meaning is “protector”, “he who defends”.
- Matthew: comes from the Hebrew and means “gift from God”. It is also popular in the Catalan form, Mateu.
- Roc – different meanings are assigned to it. It is believed that it comes from the Scandinavian “Hrokr”, which means tall man; or from the Germanic “Hruk”, crow (sacred animal of Norse mythology). It could also come from Provencal and mean “red”, or “rock”, from Latin.
Most popular girl names in Catalonia and their meaning
The 20 most popular names in Catalonia for girls , in order, are:
- Júlia/Julia : of Latin origin “Iulus”/”Iulia”, name with which the members of the Roman Julia family were identified. It means “consecrated to Jupiter”.
- Emma : of Germanic origin, it means “Great”, “Strong”, “Immense”, “Powerful”.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- Sofia : of Greek origin and its meaning is “wisdom” or “the one who possesses wisdom”.
- Laia : short for Eulalia. It comes from the Greek and means ‘well spoken’
- April : is of Latin origin, and comes from “Aprilis” name of the month of April.
- Mary : of Hebrew origin “maryam”, its meaning is “the chosen one”, “the one loved by God”.
- Noa – unisex name used for both boy and girl. It is of Hebrew origin, it means “delight”.
- Aina : variant of Anna, means “compassionate and beneficial”.
- Arlet : its origin is Hebrew and it means ‘lion of God’ or ‘altar of God’
- Paula : Latin origin “Paulus” and variant of Paola. It means “The minor”, “The small one” or “That one of small size”.
- Jana : is the hypocoristic of Joana, and the Catalan form of Juana, a name of Hebrew origin that means “full of grace” or “the one who is faithful to God”.
- Carla : of Germanic origin, its meaning is “powerful”, “the one who is strong”.
- Chloe/Chlóe : is of Greek origin, and means “grass” or “green shoots”.
- Lia/Lía : Name of Hebrew origin meaning “bearer of good news”.
- Sara : comes from the Hebrew and its meaning is “Princess”.
- Clàudia/Claudia : from the Latin “claudius”, proper name of illustrious Roman families; of claudus´´. The name of Claudia has its origin in the Roman gens Claudia, one of the most relevant during the period of the Roman Republic. Claudia was a Roman Patrician and commoner family.
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