Matthew, Maria most popular baby names

The names Matthew and Maria and their variants were the most popular names for boys and girls respectively in both 2004 and 2005, as in 2003, although Maltese names gained in popularity, according to the National Statistics Office.

A total of 3,887 babies were born in 2004 while total live births declined by 0.7 per cent the following year.

Of all the boys born in 2004, 4.7 per cent were named Matthew. The figure increased to 5.9 per cent in 2005.

Luke and its variants ranked as the second most popular male name in both years.

In 2004, Jake was the third most popular name, followed by Michael and Nathaniel, while in 2005 Michael was third followed by Aidan and Jake (with Jamie/James as variants of the latter).

The NSO said there were a number of new entrants in the top 20 boys' names, such as Karl and Zac at the expense of Thomas, Christian, Sean, Ryan, Francesco, Christopher, Joseph and Kyle.

In both years, Maria and its variants was the top preference for girls, albeit losing some popularity when compared to 2003.

In 2004, nearly five per cent of all baby girls were given this name or a version of it, and just over four per cent the following year.

In 2004, Martina shared second place with Nicole followed by Emma, Maya and Julia while in 2005 the second most popular name given to baby girls remained Martina, followed by Amy, Julia and Shania.

While the appeal of famous personalities like Kluivert, Emerson, Klajdi, Ruslana and Shakira was also reflected in name choices for babies in the two years, the same period registered an upturn in Maltese names, which included Karm, Salvu, Marija, Tereza and Manwela, the NSO said.

In 2005, names with a biblical connotation were on the rise, reaching 26.4 per cent of all babies' names. There was also an increase in the occurrence of Italian names - 17.2 per cent.