These are the most-changed baby names of the past five years

By Chris MorrisFormer Contributing Writer
Chris MorrisFormer Contributing Writer

    Chris Morris is a former contributing writer at Fortune, covering everything from general business news to the video game and theme park industries.

    Photo of a smiling baby
    The two most-changed baby names of the past five years are made because of misspellings on the birth certificate.

    It’s no secret that parents of newborns deal with sleep deprivation, but apparently that sometimes kicks in before they even leave the hospital.

    A study of the most changed baby names over the past five years by the Washington Post finds that the two most-changed names are made because of misspellings on the birth certificate.

    “Issac” is the most changed name in the U.S., according to the Social Security Administration, as parents realize it’s actually spelled “Isaac.” And many parents who name their child “Chloe” accidentally list it as “Chole” on the birth certificate, necessitating a change.

    Other changes come as people drop names that are no longer popular and instead select one that is…well, trending. (So, move over, Isabella. Olivia’s coming through.)

    Here’s a look at the most changed and most adopted names between January 2017 and March 2022.

    RankMost Changed NamesMost adopted names
    1IssacIsaac
    2CholeChloe
    3AidenSebastian
    4ConnerWilliam
    5ElliotOlivia
    6MichaelMichael
    7JamesElijah
    8IsabellaMatthew
    9SophiaConnor
    10DavidJonathan

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