Noah and Olivia hold No. 1, but Greek gods, cowboys and a hockey drama are reshaping baby names for 2027

Noah and Olivia are still at the top. But somewhere between a Christopher Nolan epic, a Montana ranch, and a streaming hockey drama, the names that will fill kindergarten classrooms in 2031 are already being decided — and they look nothing like the lists of five years ago.

BabyCenter, a digital parenting resource that has tracked baby names for more than 20 years, released its annual rankings for 2026 and its trend forecasts for 2027, sharing the findings with NBC News. The names come from more than 350,000 babies born this year whose parents are registered on the BabyCenter app. Because parents submit names in real time, BabyCenter can identify trends before the Social Security Administration publishes its official annual list.

The headline number is Eliana. The name has rocketed from No. 14 in 2024 to No. 7 last year to No. 2 for girls in 2026 — the year's most surprising climb, according to BabyCenter baby name adviser Steph Coffield, who predicts Eliana could displace Olivia at the top in 2027 if the momentum holds.

The trends this year show parents are ready to dig into the archives with some modern appreciation for the ancient, the vintage, the classic.— Steph Coffield, baby name adviser, BabyCenter

Eliana is part of a broader wave: E is the most popular first initial for girls in 2026, accounting for 15% of the top 100 girls' names. Among the climbers, Elsie gained 23 positions, Evangeline 50, Elodie 87, Elaine 143, and Esme an eye-catching 222. Among boys' names, J accounts for 14% of the top 100, with Josiah jumping 33 spots to reach No. 21 and Jeremiah climbing 28 spots to No. 60.

Names are also getting longer. About 30% of the top girls' names and 31% of the top boys' names contain seven letters or more. The longest name in the mix is Christopher, at 11 letters — and as it turns out, Christopher has a very specific pop culture tailwind behind it.

Three distinct franchises are driving the most notable surges in the 2026 data, each pulling from a completely different cultural universe.

The biggest mythology push is coming from Christopher Nolan's film 'The Odyssey,' which critics have called a masterpiece. On the boys' side, Atlas is up five spots, Orion and Troy are each up nine, Ares is up 32, Evander is up 128, and Perseus has surged 249 spots. BabyCenter's data shows girls' names moving in the same direction, with Iris gaining 18 spots, Lydia 38, and Daphne 42. Nameberry, a separate baby name resource, forecasts that the mythology wave will push parents even further in 2027 — beyond established picks like Athena and Apollo toward names like Pallas, Calypso, Circe, and even Odyssey itself.

In the United Kingdom, the retailer JoJo Maman Bébé analyzed Office for National Statistics data and found Greek mythology names already climbing ahead of the film's cultural impact. Penelope — the wife of Odysseus, played by Anne Hathaway in Nolan's film — was given to 1,174 girls in 2025. Athena, the goddess of wisdom played by Zendaya, was given to 519 girls. Atlas was given to 355 boys, according to the ONS data analyzed by JoJo Maman Bébé.

Trade mythology for the American West, and 'Yellowstone' is still leaving its mark on nurseries. Stetson rose 46 spots to No. 95 — the first time the name has ever cracked BabyCenter's top 100. Walker climbed 19 positions, Callahan 88, Wilder 107, and Gunner 151.

Then there is the hockey rink. During a year in which ESPN recorded its most-watched NHL playoff season, TV dramas set on the ice — among them 'Off Campus' and 'Heated Rivalry' — pushed names such as Garrett, Allie, Beau, and Jules higher up the charts. The breakout is Ilya, which rocketed more than 6,000 spots to No. 2,197 for boys. The surge has a specific, traceable origin: singer Carly Rae Jepsen publicly revealed that her son, Ilya Blue, was named after the character Ilya Rozanov from 'Heated Rivalry,' a gay hockey drama.

We were looking for something that felt original, and I was crazy – it almost felt like the most important creative decision I've ever made.— Carly Rae Jepsen, singer

[My husband] just walked in while I was hormonal and watching it, and I was like, 'Ilya’s beautiful,' and he was like, 'Yes, it is really great.'— Carly Rae Jepsen, singer

Not every cultural moment is lifting names. Taylor has had a difficult year. According to BabyCenter, Taylor Swift's wedding, Taylor Farms' lettuce recalls, and two well-known Taylors choosing Taylor as a middle name for their newborns all contributed to parents turning away from the name. Among girls, Taylor slipped 24 spots to No. 399. For boys, it tumbled 262 spots to No. 1,093 — out of the top 1,000 for the first time.

A 'Gilmore Girls' documentary announcement is also reshaping the list. Fall rewatches sent Stars Hollow names climbing: Lorelai is up 12 spots, Rory up 31, Luke up seven, Richard up 29, and Dean up 31 — enough to return Dean to the top 100 for the first time this century, after a heyday in the 1950s and '60s.

Looking further ahead to 2027, Nameberry's predictive tools identify additional trends: a 'blended names' movement where parents combine two favorites into one (Maeve + Avery = Mavery), a rise in moon-inspired names with roots in Turkish, Sanskrit, and Arabic, and a World Cup effect that could popularize player names like Lamine, Kylian, and Jude. Nameberry also flags a trend toward place names as heritage markers — including Odessa, which had fallen in popularity at the start of the war in Ukraine but is now rising again as a patriotic and personal choice.

Why it matters — Baby names are a leading cultural indicator — the names surging right now reveal which films, shows, and anxieties are genuinely shaping how millions of parents see the world in 2026.

Reported by nbcnews.com, thepinknews.com, huffingtonpost.co.uk, nameberry.substack.com