When I was born way back in 1963, my name, Riley, was given to less than 5 babies born in the entire United States. I was actually in my middle 20s before I met another person with that name. Things have changed in the baby-naming world quite a bit since then.

Last year, according to BehindTheName.com, 6,618 American babies were given the name Riley. 5,184 were girls, while 1,434 were boys. Overall in 2021, Riley ranked as the #33 most popular name for girls, and the #258 most popular name for boys.

RILEY written with burning candles - vector illustration
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The Social Security Administration Has Released Their List Of 2021's Most Popular Baby Names State-By-State, And A Lot Of The Same Names Are Holding Their Positions

It seems as though here in Illinois we're nothing if not predictable, at least when you look back over the last 10 years of baby naming in this state. Back in 2012, the names Noah and Olivia were the top names that Illinois parents chose for their babies, and they still were last year.

The Social Security Administration says that in Illinois last year, 648 babies were named Noah, and 697 were named Olivia.

Four Multi-Ethnic Babies Sittig on White
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Pregnant woman with baby names list sitting in armchair, closeup
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Here Are The Top Ten Most Popular Boys And Girls Names In Illinois Last Year, Along With The Number Of Babies Who Were Given Those Names

Let's get started with the girls:

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  1. Olivia (697)
  2. Emma (551)
  3. Sophia (499)
  4. Charlotte (493)
  5. Amelia (482)
  6. Ava (454)
  7. Isabella (435)
  8. Mia (399)
  9. Evelyn (351)
  10. Camila (341)

And for the boys:

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  1. Noah (648)
  2. Liam (613)
  3. Oliver (584)
  4. Henry (498)
  5. Benjamin (490)
  6. Alexander (450)
  7. Theodore (435)
  8. William (422)
  9. Mateo (415)
  10. Logan (406)

LOOK: The most popular biblical baby names

To determine the most popular biblical baby names, Stacker consulted the name origin site Behind the Name and the Social Security Administration's baby names database then ranked the top 50 names from Behind the Name's Biblical Names origins list of 564 names, based on how many babies had been given these names in 2019. Click through to find out which biblical names have stood the test of time.

Popular Child Stars From Every Year

Below, Stacker sifted through movie databases, film histories, celebrity biographies and digital archives to compile this list of popular pint-sized actors from 1919 through 2021.

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