Sofia

If baby names held a World Cup, Sofia would be deep into the knockout rounds with a comfortable lead. This is the Spanish form of a Greek original, and it means, rather grandly, "wisdom", a bold thing to bet on before your child has worked out which end of a spoon is meant to do the actual job.

The rankings back the ambition, and then some. Sofia is number one in Mexico City and number one in Catalonia, number 4 in Argentina, number 6 in Canada and number 9 in Brazil. It charts at number 12 in England and Wales, number 17 in the United States and number 24 in Australia too. Precious few names can claim to top the table on more than one continent, but this one strolls about doing exactly that, entirely unbothered by the fuss.

The real charm is how warm it manages to sound for a name that means something quite so lofty. It rolls off the tongue in any accent, softens instantly to a cheerful Sofi the moment affection strikes, and somehow feels elegant and friendly in the very same breath, no small trick for a handful of letters.

It has star power to match its considerable reach. Sophia Loren gave the name a certain silver-screen glamour that has never entirely worn off, Sofia Rotaru has carried it in song for decades, and Sofia Vergara keeps it firmly in the modern spotlight. Wisdom, it turns out, photographs remarkably well from more or less every angle.

For a matching set, it slots in beside the current Mediterranean favourites without so much as a wobble. Line it up with Mateo, Lucas, Valentina or Isabella and the whole family suddenly sounds thoroughly ready for a very sunny, very long holiday somewhere with a coastline.

It is worth noting how well the name ages, too. Wisdom is not a childish quality, and yet the name never once feels heavy on a toddler; it simply grows alongside her, sounding sweet at three, capable at thirteen and quietly assured at thirty. Precious few names manage that trick of fitting every stage of a life so comfortably, and the ones that do tend to end up exactly where this one is, near the very top of the charts.

The one hesitation is simply the flip side of all that popularity: a name this beloved is a name your daughter may well end up sharing with a classmate or two along the way. That is the eternal riddle of naming, you want wise, warm and worldly, but you also want just a little bit unusual, and you can rarely have all four at once. Still, wisdom itself would probably tell you to sleep on it. On to the next contender.