Ava’s 12-year run is over. Mississippi has a new most popular baby name for girls

For the first time since 2013, Mississippi has a new most popular name for baby girls, based off information from the Social Security Administration.

After 12 years where Ava was the most chosen name for a baby girl in the state, Amelia was most chosen in 2025. On the boys side, James was the most popular name for a baby boy in Mississippi for the first time since 2022.

Nationally, Liam is the most popular boys name, while Olivia takes the top spot on the girls side.

The information comes from Social Security card applications for babies born in 2025. Names are restricted to cases where the year of birth, sex, and state of birth are on record, and where the given name is at least 2 characters long.

Different spellings of similar names are not combined. For example, the names Caitlin, Caitlyn, Kaitlin, Kaitlyn, Kaitlynn, Katelyn, and Katelynn are considered separate names and each has its own rank.

Most popular names for girls

• 1. Amelia
• 2. Ava
• 3. Charlotte
• 4. Olivia
• 5. Elizabeth
• 6. Mary
• 7. Emma
• 8. Ivy
• 9. Nova
• 10. Lainey

Most popular names for boys

• 1. James
• 2. William
• 3. John
• 4. Noah
• 5. Elijah
• 6. Waylon
• 7. Liam
• 8. Henry
• 9. Hudson
• 10. Thomas