Thirty years of Poppy
Poppy in numbers
Poppy peaked in 2013 with 3,422 girls and has fallen since, to 1,789 in 2025. Its biggest three-year rise came between 2009 and 2012, from 2,226 to 3,203. It ranked 92nd in 1996, reached 5th in 2014 and ranks 7th now. On average it was given to 514 girls a year in the late 1990s, 1,394 in the 2000s, 2,763 in the 2010s and 1,827 in the 2020s so far.
† Shapes, averages and turning points are Baby Data calculations from the ONS counts.
What the official statisticians said
“Poppy being most popular in November, likely because of the connection with poppies and Remembrance Day”
ONS, on 2023 births in England and Wales. Read the source
“There were 1053 Poppies registered in 2003, taking this name from 63rd to 43rd in the ranking.”
General Register Office, on 2003 births in England and Wales. Read the source
Quoted word for word from the official releases, including their own “may” and “could”. Baby Data has not added reasons of its own. Releases for Scotland and Northern Ireland are about babies there, not in England and Wales.
Milestones
First year in each bandChange
- On last year-5%1,888 to 1,789
- 5 years-3%1,838 to 1,789
- 10 years-36%2,816 to 1,789
- 20 years+14%1,574 to 1,789
- Since 1996×3537 to 1,789
- Total, 1996 to 202554,591girls
† All changes and totals are Baby Data calculations from ONS counts. A total adds only the published years.
Across the three nations, 2025
Each from its own statistics office, never added togetherRank 7 · ONS · 1,888 in 2024
Rank 35 · NRS · 135 in 2024
Rank 51 · NISRA · 37 in 2024
England and Wales (ONS) count births in the calendar year; Scotland (NRS) and Northern Ireland (NISRA) count births registered in the year. Each comes from its own statistics office and they are never added together.
Year by year, 1996 to 2025 Show all 30 yearsHide the table
| Year | Rank | Babies | Change† | 1 in X† |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 7 | 1,789 | -5% | 1 in 159 |
| 2024 | 8 | 1,888 | +8% | 1 in 153 |
| 2023 | 11 | 1,755 | -5% | 1 in 164 |
| 2022 | 13 | 1,848 | +0% | 1 in 160 |
| 2021 | 17 | 1,841 | +0% | 1 in 166 |
| 2020 | 17 | 1,838 | -9% | 1 in 163 |
| 2019 | 17 | 2,022 | -9% | 1 in 154 |
| 2018 | 11 | 2,226 | -12% | 1 in 144 |
| 2017 | 8 | 2,527 | +1% | 1 in 131 |
| 2016 | 13 | 2,506 | -11% | 1 in 135 |
| 2015 | 10 | 2,816 | -14% | 1 in 121 |
| 2014 | 5 | 3,273 | -4% | 1 in 103 |
| 2013 * | 7 | 3,422 | +7% | 1 in 100 |
| 2012 | 13 | 3,203 | +9% | 1 in 111 |
| 2011 | 14 | 2,932 | +8% | 1 in 120 |
| 2010 | 16 | 2,706 | +22% | 1 in 130 |
| 2009 | 22 | 2,226 | +13% | 1 in 155 |
| 2008 | 28 | 1,975 | +5% | 1 in 175 |
| 2007 | 28 | 1,886 | +5% | 1 in 178 |
| 2006 | 30 | 1,794 | +14% | 1 in 182 |
| 2005 | 35 | 1,574 | +26% | 1 in 200 |
| 2004 | 45 | 1,246 | +4% | 1 in 250 |
| 2003 | 43 | 1,200 | +45% | 1 in 253 |
| 2002 | 63 | 828 | +34% | 1 in 350 |
| 2001 | 84 | 617 | +3% | 1 in 470 |
| 2000 | 86 | 598 | +16% | 1 in 493 |
| 1999 | 100 | 516 | -3% | 1 in 586 |
| 1998 | 98 | 534 | +14% | n/a |
| 1997 | =108 | 468 | -13% | 1 in 670 |
| 1996 | 92 | 537 | 1 in 588 |
* ONS’s girls’ 2013 file repeats the May total as April, so the 2013 births total is about 1,360 too high and 1 in X for 2013 is slightly too high. 1 in X is not shown for girls in 1998: one monthly total is missing from the ONS girls’ 1998 file. Rank follows ONS: names with the same count share a rank (shown with =). “Under 3” means the name was given to fewer than 3 babies that year, so ONS did not publish it.
Compare Poppy
Draws the second name on the chart above, on a shared scale.
Share and download
Poppy is in the free dataset (CSV and JSON), with the method and how to cite it.
Source: Office for National Statistics, Baby names in England and Wales, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0; National Records of Scotland; NISRA. Exact spellings are counted separately and names given to fewer than 3 babies are not published. Figures marked † are Baby Data calculations. How we calculate
Poppy is in our lists: Nature baby names, Flower baby names.