The Most Popular and Rarest Baby Names in the First Half of 2026: The Ministry of Justice Has Released New Statistics
22 July 03:20
Sofia and Artem remain the undisputed leaders among names, but the trend toward choosing less common names continues.
Ukraine’s Ministry of Justice has released a list of the most popular and rarest names chosen by parents for newborns in the first half of 2026, according to "Komersant Ukrainian"
According to the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine, the most popular names for newborns were Sofia for girls and Artem for boys.
At the same time, Ukrainian parents are increasingly choosing uncommon, historical, foreign, or double names, combining Ukrainian traditions with modern trends.
The most popular names for boys and girls in the first half of 2026
The top ten most popular girls’ names included Sofia, Zlata, Milana, Emilia, Anna, Anastasia, Polina, Maria, Solomiya, and Eva.
The most common names given to newborn boys were Artem, Oleksandr, Matviy, Maksym, Tymofiy, Bohdan, Davyd, Yaroslav, Roman, and Dmytro.
According to the Ministry of Justice, these names remain the most common in most regions of the country. In particular, the name Sofia ranks among the top names in the Vinnytsia, Volyn, Odesa, and Kharkiv regions.
The names Artem and Oleksandr consistently hold leading positions in both the central, western, and eastern regions of Ukraine.
At the same time, Zlata and Milana are particularly popular in the west and center of the country, while Matviy and Tymofiy are popular in the western regions.
Alongside traditional names, there remains a trend among Ukrainians toward choosing more unusual options. As the Ministry of Justice notes, parents are increasingly choosing double names for their children, as well as foreign, biblical, historical, and Old Ukrainian names. The ministry notes that this choice reflects a desire “to combine tradition with modernity and give the child an unusual name.”
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Rare Names for Boys and Girls: Double Names, Names of Historical and Foreign Origin
Among the double female names registered in the first half of 2026, were Adelaide-Loredana, Maryam-Nicolett, Dominika-Aniel, Margarita-Kylina, and Abavedaria-Alice.
For boys, parents chose combinations such as Daniel-Arthur Theophilus, Roman-Nurislam, Andriy-Andrian, Eliot-Theo, and Mark-Gabriel.
The popularity of names that are atypical for Ukrainian tradition remains just as noticeable. Among girls in the first half of this year, the names Aysel, Imeralina, Delli, Kaylee, Kasia, Patricia, Rose, Sanita, Uma, and Esther were registered. Boys were given names such as Amir, Leon, Sebastian, Dayan, Liam, Kilian, Ethan, Martin, David, Richard, and Evan.
Names of religious or cultural origin constitute a separate category. For girls, parents chose names such as Avigaya, Virsavia, Sulamita, Evangelina, Sarah, Theona, Melania, Magdalene, Athena, and Juno. Among boys, this category included Samuil, Jesse, Nathanael, Solomon, Emmanuel, Elisha, Jeremiah, Adam, Seraphim, and Benjamin.
The Ministry of Justice’s registries also list numerous historical and Old Ukrainian names. In particular, girls were named Boguslava, Vladomira, Dzvinka, Kvitislava, Lukeria, Olimpiada, Roksolana, Kvitka, Yaryna, and Orislava. Rare boys’ names include Dobromir, Svyatogor, Svitozar, Zoreslav, Askold, Tamerlane, Aeneas, Panteleimon, Myrolyub, and Yariy.
These statistics indicate that Ukrainians continue to prefer more traditional names; however, modern parents are increasingly bold in choosing unique names for their children, seeking to emphasize their individuality.
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