THAT'S NOT MY NAME, THAT'S NOT MY NAME. Here are the most popular baby names in Wisconsin in the year 2021. (Photo via Unsplash)

When talking about trends that come and go, we can’t forget about the most common, yet often overlooked trend: baby names. Whether you are expecting, expecting to expect, or expecting to expect expecting, it’s always nice to know what names are trending so you can get some inspiration or avoid them like the plague.

According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, the most popular baby name of all in Wisconsin last year was Oliver, with a whopping 336 Social Security card applications in that name. In fact, it was the fourth consecutive year that Oliver was No. 1 on the list. The other top male names for 2021 were Henry (with 299 applications), Theodore, Liam, Levi, Noah, Jack, Owen, William, and Jackson. On a more personal note, “Sawyer” was in 58th place and was only applied for 95 times. As a state, I think we can do better.

On the other side of things, Charlotte was the No. 1 female baby name in 2021 with a total of 290 kiddos getting that on their cute lil’ Social Security cards. (Charlotte was the most popular girls’ name in 2020 as well.) Also in the 2021 top 10 were Olivia, Emma, Evelyn, Amelia, Ava, Harper, Eleanor, Nora, and Sophia. “Sawyer” didn’t even make this list of female names. Tragic.

Though there is no complete data yet for the most popular names in 2022 (because we’re still in it), the popular names are projected to stay about the same, although many other names are slowly but surely climbing the popularity ladder. The name “Amiri” for male names jumped a total of 534 places in the rank from 2020 to 2021, while the name “Raya” for females leaped a full 441 places in the rank in a year as well.

So whether you are a fan of the classic baby names – hey, they’re well-liked for a reason – or you like names that are more out there, it’s good to know which names are doing numbers.