Thirty years of Sofia
Sofia in numbers
Sofia has risen from 128 girls in 1996 to 1,490 in 2025, though it is below its peak of 1,728 in 2018. Its biggest three-year rise came between 2010 and 2013, from 992 to 1,610. It ranked 290th in 1996, reached 12th in 2024 and ranks 17th now. On average it was given to 171 girls a year in the late 1990s, 516 in the 2000s, 1,528 in the 2010s and 1,583 in the 2020s so far.
† Shapes, averages and turning points are Baby Data calculations from the ONS counts.
Milestones
First year in each bandChange
- On last year-8%1,626 to 1,490
- 5 years-8%1,623 to 1,490
- 10 years-9%1,640 to 1,490
- 20 years+175%542 to 1,490
- Since 1996×12128 to 1,490
- Total, 1996 to 202530,626girls
† 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 17 · ONS · 1,626 in 2024
Rank 17 · NRS · 147 in 2024
Rank 32 · NISRA · 28 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 | 17 | 1,490 | -8% | 1 in 191 |
| 2024 | 12 | 1,626 | +7% | 1 in 178 |
| 2023 | 19 | 1,514 | -4% | 1 in 190 |
| 2022 | 20 | 1,576 | -6% | 1 in 187 |
| 2021 | 23 | 1,671 | +3% | 1 in 182 |
| 2020 | 23 | 1,623 | -4% | 1 in 185 |
| 2019 | 26 | 1,688 | -2% | 1 in 184 |
| 2018 | 29 | 1,728 | +4% | 1 in 185 |
| 2017 | 31 | 1,664 | -1% | 1 in 199 |
| 2016 | 29 | 1,683 | +3% | 1 in 202 |
| 2015 | 31 | 1,640 | -3% | 1 in 207 |
| 2014 | 28 | 1,692 | +5% | 1 in 200 |
| 2013 * | 30 | 1,610 | +21% | 1 in 212 |
| 2012 | 43 | 1,336 | +7% | 1 in 266 |
| 2011 | 47 | 1,249 | +26% | 1 in 283 |
| 2010 | 62 | 992 | +15% | 1 in 355 |
| 2009 | 74 | 866 | +4% | 1 in 397 |
| 2008 | =76 | 836 | +12% | 1 in 414 |
| 2007 | 81 | 746 | +18% | 1 in 450 |
| 2006 | 88 | 630 | +16% | 1 in 519 |
| 2005 | 96 | 542 | +18% | 1 in 582 |
| 2004 | 117 | 459 | +39% | 1 in 678 |
| 2003 | 147 | 331 | +14% | 1 in 915 |
| 2002 | 151 | 291 | +31% | 1 in 997 |
| 2001 | 186 | 222 | -6% | 1 in 1,306 |
| 2000 | =183 | 237 | +23% | 1 in 1,244 |
| 1999 | =214 | 193 | -2% | 1 in 1,568 |
| 1998 | =212 | 196 | +17% | n/a |
| 1997 | 241 | 167 | +30% | 1 in 1,877 |
| 1996 | =290 | 128 | 1 in 2,469 |
* 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 Sofia
Draws the second name on the chart above, on a shared scale.
Share and download
Sofia 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