Recent figures from the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA) reveal that classic names Jack, Grace and Emily top the charts as Northern Ireland’s most popular.

There were 293 boys named Jack between January 1 and December 9 of 2013 out of around 12,400 boys; Grace and Emily tie at 203 girls each, out of around 11,700 girls.

According to the NISRA, Jack has been the most popular boy’s name in Northern Ireland for the last decade, with James as a close second for the third year in a row. Charlie has climbed to third most popular from fifth in the year before.

The top 10 list of boys’ names remains similar to what it was in 2003, still including Jack, James, Matthew and Daniel, but there have been new entries like Jacob and Oliver, which have replaced Ryan and Riley.

Girls’ names have been changing, on the other hand – no top names from 2003 remain on the list today.

Emily and Grace, which tie at most popular, moved up one and two places respectively since 2012. New 2013 entries include Ella and Anna, replacing Katie and Eva. The highest ranking Irish language name for girls is Aoife, at number 7.

Though these popular names are timeless, not every Northern Irish parent has been following the pack.

Quirky names registered in the last year include Zoltan, Teejay, Kale, Ezekiel, Buster, Ziggy and Oberon for boys, and Jersey, Pixie-bea, Pyper, Kiki, Princess-rozara and Shakira for girls.

Jack and James are also the top two leading boys’ names in the Republic of Ireland, followed by Daniel, Conor and Sean. Emily is number one for girls as well, followed by Emma, Sophie, Ella and Amelia.

2013 Boys’ top 10

1. Jack

2. James

3. Charlie

4. Harry

5. Daniel

6. Noah

7. Matthew

8. Ethan

9. Jacob

10. Oliver

2013 Girls’ top 10

1. Emily

2. Grace

3. Sophie

4. Ella

5. Sophia

6. Lucy

7. Aoife

8. Amelia

9. Anna

10. Jessica