Special Report

These Names Are Trending on the West Coast

John Harrington, Cheyenne Buckingham

Published: July 30, 2018 5:11 pm

Last Updated: January 11, 2020 8:09 pm

They say the East Coast and West Coast differ in manners, culture, and even the way people look at life. Does this translate to naming babies, too?

Well, the names Emma and Olivia reign supreme on either coast, as do popular names such as Liam, Noah, and Isabella. But there is some divergence. You won’t find the name Mateo among the top 25 names on the East Coast, nor will you find Camila or Sofia.

To help explain these naming patterns, 24/7 Wall St. has compiled a list of the top 25 names trending higher on the West Coast, using data obtained from the Social Security Administration.

Click here to see the list of names trending on the West Coast.
Click here to read our detailed findings and methodology.

25. Charlotte
> 2017 West Coast babies: 1,881 (0.77%)
> Most popular West Coast state: Alaska
> 2017 nationwide babies: 12,893 (0.75%)
> Famous person named Charlotte: Charlotte Brontë

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24. Lucas
> 2017 West Coast babies: 2,160 (0.79%)
> Most popular West Coast state: Alaska
> 2017 nationwide babies: 12,951 (0.71%)
> Famous person named Lucas: Lucas Till

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23. Abigail
> 2017 West Coast babies: 1,962 (0.80%)
> Most popular West Coast state: Alaska
> 2017 nationwide babies: 10,551 (0.62%)
> Famous person named Abigail: Abigail Adams

22. Sofia
> 2017 West Coast babies: 1,964 (0.80%)
> Most popular West Coast state: California
> 2017 nationwide babies: 8,134 (0.48%)
> Famous person named Sofia: Sofía Vergara

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21. Camila
> 2017 West Coast babies: 1,980 (0.81%)
> Most popular West Coast state: California
> 2017 nationwide babies: 6,752 (0.39%)
> Famous person named Camila: Camila Cabello

20. Julian
> 2017 West Coast babies: 2,253 (0.82%)
> Most popular West Coast state: California
> 2017 nationwide babies: 8,393 (0.46%)
> Famous person named Julian: Julian Castro

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19. Oliver
> 2017 West Coast babies: 2,261 (0.83%)
> Most popular West Coast state: Oregon
> 2017 nationwide babies: 13,141 (0.72%)
> Famous person named Oliver: Oliver Stone

18. Ava
> 2017 West Coast babies: 2,031 (0.83%)
> Most popular West Coast state: Hawaii
> 2017 nationwide babies: 15,902 (0.93%)
> Famous person named Ava: Ava Gardner

17. Mateo
> 2017 West Coast babies: 2,295 (0.84%)
> Most popular West Coast state: California
> 2017 nationwide babies: 7,726 (0.42%)
> Famous person named Mateo: Mateo Morales

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16. Logan
> 2017 West Coast babies: 2,357 (0.86%)
> Most popular West Coast state: Hawaii
> 2017 nationwide babies: 13,974 (0.76%)
> Famous person named Logan: Logan Marshall-Green

15. Benjamin
> 2017 West Coast babies: 2,422 (0.89%)
> Most popular West Coast state: Oregon
> 2017 nationwide babies: 13,733 (0.75%)
> Famous person named Benjamin: Benjamin Spock

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14. Emily
> 2017 West Coast babies: 2,173 (0.89%)
> Most popular West Coast state: Alaska
> 2017 nationwide babies: 9,746 (0.57%)
> Famous person named Emily: Emily Blunt

13. Jacob
> 2017 West Coast babies: 2,442 (0.89%)
> Most popular West Coast state: California
> 2017 nationwide babies: 13,106 (0.71%)
> Famous person named Jacob: Jacob Zuma

12. Alexander
> 2017 West Coast babies: 2,457 (0.90%)
> Most popular West Coast state: Hawaii
> 2017 nationwide babies: 12,467 (0.68%)
> Famous person named Alexander: Alexander Ludwig

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11. Matthew
> 2017 West Coast babies: 2,475 (0.90%)
> Most popular West Coast state: California
> 2017 nationwide babies: 11,611 (0.63%)
> Famous person named Matthew: Matthew Broderick

10. Daniel
> 2017 West Coast babies: 2,537 (0.93%)
> Most popular West Coast state: California
> 2017 nationwide babies: 11,640 (0.63%)
> Famous person named Daniel: Daniel Radcliffe

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9. Sebastian
> 2017 West Coast babies: 2,588 (0.95%)
> Most popular West Coast state: California
> 2017 nationwide babies: 10,136 (0.55%)
> Famous person named Sebastian: Sebastian Stan

8. Ethan
> 2017 West Coast babies: 2,646 (0.97%)
> Most popular West Coast state: Alaska
> 2017 nationwide babies: 12,389 (0.68%)
> Famous person named Ethan: Ethan Coen

7. Liam
> 2017 West Coast babies: 2,940 (1.07%)
> Most popular West Coast state: Hawaii
> 2017 nationwide babies: 18,728 (1.02%)
> Famous person named Liam: Liam Hemsworth

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6. Noah
> 2017 West Coast babies: 3,126 (1.14%)
> Most popular West Coast state: Hawaii
> 2017 nationwide babies: 18,326 (1.00%)
> Famous person named Noah: Noah Schnapp

5. Isabella
> 2017 West Coast babies: 2,836 (1.16%)
> Most popular West Coast state: Alaska
> 2017 nationwide babies: 15,100 (0.88%)
> Famous person named Isabella: Isabella Blow

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4. Sophia
> 2017 West Coast babies: 2,948 (1.21%)
> Most popular West Coast state: Alaska
> 2017 nationwide babies: 14,831 (0.87%)
> Famous person named Sophia: Sophia Bush

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3. Mia
> 2017 West Coast babies: 3,023 (1.24%)
> Most popular West Coast state: California
> 2017 nationwide babies: 13,437 (0.78%)
> Famous person named Mia: Mia Farrow

2. Olivia
> 2017 West Coast babies: 3,229 (1.32%)
> Most popular West Coast state: Alaska
> 2017 nationwide babies: 18,632 (1.09%)
> Famous person named Olivia: Olivia Munn

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1. Emma
> 2017 West Coast babies: 3,484 (1.43%)
> Most popular West Coast state: Alaska
> 2017 nationwide babies: 19,738 (1.15%)
> Famous person named Emma: Emma Stone

Detailed Findings & Methodology

The reason for these variations in naming is largely because of demographic changes. With a surging Hispanic population in California, the nation’s most populous state, the names Mateo and Camila are more popular on the West Coast. According to the California Department of Finance, 39.1 million people lived in the state as of 2015, including 15.2 million Latinos (39%). The DOF’s models project that by 2060, 49% of California’s population will be Latino.

Pamela Redmond Satran, co-creator and chief executive officer of Nameberry, an online source for baby names, baby lists and, name meanings, provided some perspective on the name trends on the West Coast.

“What we see [in California], is a much stronger influence of Hispanic names, with Mia and Isabella, both very popular with Latino parents as well as with non-Latinos,” Redmond Satran said in an email. “Those name[s] rank much higher for girls than on the East Coast and with the predominantly Latino Camila, Sofia, and Mateo ranking among the Top 25. Sebastian is also a name well-used among Hispanic parents and popular in Mexico and Chile, for instance, as well as throughout Europe.”

Mateo is the Spanish version of Matthew, the Spanish version of Matthew, who was one of the 12 apostles of Jesus. Camila is the first name of emerging Cuban-American singer-songwriter Camila Cabello. Sebastian is the patron saint of many towns and cities in the Spanish-speaking world, including the city of Leon in Mexico.

To identify names trending on the West Coast, 24/7 Wall St reviewed data from the Social Security Administration. Only Alaska, California, Hawaii, Oregon, and Washington were considered as they are true coastal states. Our list is ranked by the share of babies of each sex born in 2017 given a certain name. We selected the 50 names with the highest shares of babies born that year given that name.