In a plot twist that Charles Dickens would certainly approve of, Oliver has overtaken Noah as the most popular name for babies born in B.C. in 2024.
Oliver was followed by Olivia, Liam, Noah, Theodore, Charlotte, Lucas, Isla, Amelia, and Leo, according to the Vital Statistics Agency's preliminary figures for 2024.
In 2023, Noah was the top baby name in B.C., followed by Oliver, Olivia, Theodore, Liam, Jack, Emma, Sophia, Ethan, and Leo. Only names that occur five or more times in a given year are listed.
“Oliver” and “Noah” have been duking it out — at least in literature — since 1837, when Charles Dickens’ second novel Oliver Twist began being published. When Oliver is sold to the undertaker Mr. Sowerberry at the beginning of the novel (after famously asking for more during meal time at the workhouse), he encounters a young man named Noah Claypole, who is Sowerberry’s apprentice.
Noah mocks and bullies Oliver incessantly, until Oliver finally turns on him. In Chapter 6 of the novel, published in April 1837, Oliver beats Noah soundly, despite being younger and smaller than the other boy, then escapes to London, where he joins the criminal gang led by Fagin. The scene has been depicted by various artists over the decades, starting with George Cruikshank, the novel’s original illustrator, whose imagining of the scene was titled “Oliver plucks up a Spirit.”
In most filmed versions of the story — including the Best Picture Oscar-winner Oliver! (1969) — that is the last we see of Noah. In the novel, however, Noah eventually leaves Sowerberry’s after stealing from his employer and winds up travelling to London himself, where he joins Fagin’s gang under an assumed name. He is indirectly responsible for the death of the main female character, Nancy, when he tells Fagin that she is betraying him and the gang by planning to return Oliver to his rightful home. When Fagin and the gang are arrested, Noah turns informer on Fagin in order to save his own skin.
As of Monday, Dec. 16, a total of 38,103 babies were registered as born in B.C. in 2024. To see how popular names have changed over time — or perhaps find the perfect name for your own baby — go to https://bit.ly/3rKHT36, where you can chart the popularity of different names over the last five, 10, 20, 50, or 100 years.
