In 2023, the most popular boys' names in Estonia were Lucas, Karl, Aron, Hugo, Mark, Mattias, Robin, Markus, Sebastian and Oskar. The most popular girls' names were Sofia, Mia, Emily, Emma, Maria, Nora, Olivia, Elli, Saara and Eva.

Annika Hussar, a researcher who specializes in names, said that over the last few years, the general pattern has been for international names to become more popular. "These include older names that are already familiar and well-established in Estonia, such as Elisabeth, Emilia, Hugo or August, but there are also some new names," Hussar explained.

According to Hussar, there were no major surprises in the names that ended 2023 on the most popular list.

Hussar has also noticed, from looking at the most popular baby names in other countries, that naming trends that occur in Germany usually tend to come to Estonia a couple of years later. "[In Germany], there are more short names, such as Mia, Ella, Paul and Leon. These same names are also on the rise in Estonia. One could predict that short names will start to make more appearances among our rankings," Hussar suggested.

Hussar pointed out that some of the names that were very popular in the last century are no longer being chosen for newborns. "The names Krista, Kristi, Kristel, Kristiina, Kristina and Kristin are now out of date," she said.

Some other names too, such as Indrek, Priit, Triin and Kristjan, which were in fashion at several points in the last century, are now less popular. "These are the names of parents and grandparents. They will come back in at some point, but for now, it's too soon," said Hussar.

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