New Zealand's most common surname among babies born in 2020 is Singh, the Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages has revealed.
New data released on Thursday showed more than 26,549 individual family names registered in 2020 for the 58,000 babies registered in New Zealand.
Singh came out on top with 398 babies registering it as their last name. It was followed by Smith, Kaur, Patel, and Williams.
Patel made it to the top five for the first time, taking the place of surname Wilson.
"The list of the most common surnames for 2020 is yet another indication of Aotearoa New Zealand's thriving diversity," said executive director of the Office of Ethnic Communities, Anusha Guler.
"This is good news, as diversity in our communities helps make New Zealand a more culturally rich, innovative and connected place."
The Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages also found some regional variant in names, with Patel being the most common family name in Wellington, while Singh reigned supreme in Auckland and Bay of Plenty, and Smith took out top spot in Canterbury, Otago, West Coast and Southland.
Registrar-General Jeff Montgomery said the emergence of names such as Singh, Kaur, and Patel reflected both immigration and religious affiliation trends.
"Most new citizens come from the United Kingdom and India, with a significant number from Sikh backgrounds where Singh is the chosen family name for boys and Kaur for girls."
The top 10 surnames are:
- Singh (398)
- Smith (319)
- Kaur (274)
- Patel (204)
- Williams (198)
- Brown (194)
- Wilson (179)
- Taylor (152)
- Thompson (148)
- Anderson (143)
