Male and female first names

Marc replaces Jean as most common male first name in Belgium

Population
Marc replaces Jean as most common male first name in Belgium

A wind of change is blowing across the landscape of male first names in Belgium, with Marc emerging as the new national leader, dethroning Jean. Although Jean retained its status in Wallonia, it gave way to Marc on the national stage. In 2022, there were 63,736 persons named Jean, compared to 62,754 named Marc. However, things have changed in 2023, with 62,023 Marc, surpassing the 61,456 Jean.

The traditional first names that monopolise the top spots in the ranking are in constant decline. Of the seven most common first names, all are experiencing a decrease in frequency, while the last three in the top 10 are experiencing an increase: Mohamed, in 8th place with 36,218 occurrences (+777), David in 9th place with 36,129 occurrences (+230), and Thomas in 10th place with 34,923 occurrences (+18). However, the names in the top 10 are identical to last year's, with the only change being a one-place gain for Marc and Mohamed.

For women, Maria remains first: 108,358 women bear this first name, compared to 112,382 in 2022 and 116,317 in 2021. The top 10 remains unchanged from last year, with the exception of Anna, which is the only first name to increase, taking over the tenth place from Isabelle.

Top 10 of male and female first names:

Men, Belgium, all ages:

Belgium #
1 Marc 62,023
2 Jean 61,456
3 Patrick 50,011
4 Luc 47,402
5 Michel 44,434
6 Philippe 40,822
7 Jan 39,341
8 Mohamed 36,218
9 David 36,129
10 Thomas 34,923

Women, Belgium, all ages:

Belgium #
1 Maria 108,358
2 Marie 88,519
3 Martine 39,897
4 Nathalie 39,888
5 Monique 37,591
6 Anne 36,681
7 Rita 33,703
8 Nicole 31,682
9 Christine 31,220
10 Anna 30,739
Top 10 women
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First names of women in 2023 (top 10)

Belgium Flemish Region Walloon Region Brussels-Capital Region
1 Maria 108,358 1 Maria 80,436 1 Marie 40,226 1 Maria 10,383
2 Marie 88,519 2 Marie 41,188 2 Nathalie 20,512 2 Marie 7,105
3 Martine 39,897 3 Rita 29,359 3 Isabelle 18,685 3 Fatima 6,150
4 Nathalie 39,888 4 Ann 24,625 4 Anne 18,406 4 Anne 4,057
5 Monique 37,591 5 Martine 23,437 5 Maria 17,539 5 Sarah 3,734
6 Anne 36,681 6 Marleen 22,309 6 Françoise 14,925 6 Anna 3,341
7 Rita 33,703 7 Monique 21,140 7 Christine 14,832 7 Nathalie 2,857
8 Nicole 31,682 8 Anna 20,864 8 Martine 14,257 8 Laura 2,742
9 Christine 31,220 9 Linda 17,912 9 Véronique 14,152 9 Sophie 2,650
10 Anna 30,739 10 Hilde 17,796 10 Monique 14,048 10 Sara 2,611
Source: Statbel (Directorate-general Statistics - Statistics Belgium)
Women per municipality
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Top 10 men
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First names of men in 2023 (top 10)

Belgium Flemish Region Walloon Region Brussels-Capital Region
1 Marc 62,023 1 Marc 43,148 1 Jean 32,990 1 Mohamed 13,506
2 Jean 61,456 2 Luc 38,212 2 Michel 27,090 2 Jean 5,582
3 Patrick 50,011 3 Jan 37,551 3 Philippe 26,189 3 Mohammed 4,954
4 Luc 47,402 4 Patrick 33,398 4 Pierre 19,343 4 Ahmed 4,157
5 Michel 44,434 5 Dirk 30,975 5 Nicolas 19,099 5 David 3,887
6 Philippe 40,822 6 Peter 30,899 6 Alain 18,923 6 Philippe 3,805
7 Jan 39,341 7 Johan 29,458 7 Olivier 16,107 7 Nicolas 3,782
8 Mohamed 36,218 8 Bart 28,520 8 Christian 16,106 8 Michel 3,749
9 David 36,129 9 Tom 24,631 9 Marc 15,697 9 Daniel 3,730
10 Thomas 34,923 10 Paul 23,863 10 Christophe 15,671 10 Adam 3,639
Source: Statbel (Directorate-general Statistics - Statistics Belgium)
Men per municipality
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