How to determine which is the most beautiful first name? After all, it’s a matter of taste, a subjective perception… However, scientists took up the challenge and decided to find the most beautiful female name by taking into account several criteria. Want to know which one was chosen?
If we asked 10 people what the most beautiful name for a girl is, we would get 10 different answers. It’s no surprise that everyone has a different idea of what is “pretty.” However, researchers wanted to determine the most beautiful female name. To do this, they took into account criteria different from those that parents generally use to choose a first name. These objective and quantifiable criteria led to the selection of the most beautiful first name in the world.
The search for the most beautiful first name was launched in collaboration with researchers from the University of Birmingham. Linguist Dr Bodo Winter looked at 100 of the most popular girls’ names. He studied people’s reactions when they heard these names spoken aloud. According to him, certain names evoke good emotions, others less good. The melody of the first name, its meaning and its associations are essential. Interestingly, according to the expert, these associations are similar in different parts of the world and in different languages.
What was the researcher’s conclusion? It turns out that among female names, Sofia came out on top. This first name, written differently but sounding similar in Slavic, Romance or Germanic languages, is the most melodious and evokes the best emotions. In a parallel study of male names, Zayn won first place.
Sofia, Sophia, Sophie, Soffie, Sofija are different variations of a first name which has its origins in the Greek language. In Greek, sophia (σοφία) means “wisdom”. In ancient times, this word was very popular and used in philosophical speeches. Over time, Sophia became a popular first name, associated with a wise, beautiful and graceful woman. The first name is one of the most popular in the world and is associated with many beautiful, intelligent and remarkable women, such as Sophia Loren, Sophia Copolla, Sophie Marceau or the Spanish Queen Sophia.
In France, the first name Sophia occupies rank no. 138 in the top girl’s first names and rank no. 292 in the ranking of the most given first names. In 2021, 469 girls were given the first name Sophia and since 1900, 15,826 have received it. As for the first name Sophie, it occupies rank no. 228 in the top girl’s first names and rank no. 452 in the ranking of the most given first names in France. Only 299 girls were given the first name Sophie in 2021 and since 1900, 246,234 girls have been given the first name Sophie.