Freya has replaced Olivia as the most chosen name for baby girls in Scotland according to data from the National Records of Scotland.
In 2025, 268 babies were given the name after it had been in the top three girls’ names for the previous three years finally reaching the top spot last year.
Olivia has been in the top five baby girls names in Scotland since 2008, holding the first and second place for most chosen since 2016.
Noah remains at number one for boys with 318 babies given the name in 2025. It has been in the top three since 2020.
The biggest climbers for girls names within the top 100 were Lilly and Matilda, both up 55 places to 83rd and 93rd respectively.
It’s always exciting to see a name reach the number one spot for the first time. Freya has taken a long time to reach the top. The name ranked 578th in the 1970s and rose in popularity each decade until arriving at number one in 2025
Darcy moved up by 52 places to 100th and Margot up by 45 to 79th.
Climbing the boys top 100 were Vinnie up 70 places to 95th, Cooper up 42 places to 79th and Ruaridh up 33 places to 52nd.
NRS Statistician Anouska Pandya said: “NRS sends congratulations to everyone who welcomed babies in 2025.
“It’s always exciting to see a name reach the number one spot for the first time. Freya has taken a long time to reach the top. The name ranked 578th in the 1970s and rose in popularity each decade until arriving at number one in 2025.”
There are now a record number of names in use for boys (3,957). There are still many more names in use for girls (4,603) but that number has fallen slightly since 2024.
NRS said the data does not provide evidence for why particular names rise or fall in popularity but sometimes changes coincide with their use in popular culture.
Freya is one spelling for the name of a goddess in Norse mythology and is also the name of the actress Freya Allan in TV show The Witcher and a character in another show called The Originals.
Although the numbers are smaller, names of characters from the Bridgerton books and TV series: Daphne, Eloise and Penelope; are all gaining popularity as well.
The name Aurora has been climbing alongside increased visibility of the aurora borealis or Northern Lights.
In 2024 and 2025, an increase in Northern Lights visibility in Scotland has occurred alongside record numbers of parents embracing the name for their babies, with 74 and 89 girls being called Aurora each year respectively.
Analysis of the data has found parents showed a growing preference for names beginning with the letter A with 14% of girls and 11.7% of boys now have names starting with the first letter of the alphabet.