James, William, Thomas and Elizabeth have been the most consistently popular over the past 100 years, with most other names having a clear peak.
Most of the top 20 girls' names peaked before the 21st century, with Emma, Sarah and Jessica the most recent to peak in popularity.
The current top names do not feature in this list of the most popular names ever.
Top 10 Boys Names:
John, David, William, James, Michael, Robert, Peter, Thomas, Andrew, Paul.
Top 10 Girls Names:
Margaret, Mary, Elizabeth, Sarah, Patricia, Susan, Helen, Jennifer, Christine, Karen.
Tauranga woman, Eleanor Burkin has been keeping records of baby names in New Zealand for more than 30 years.
She said she was surprised to see that the most popular names in the last century aren't really popular anymore.
Burkin said she was particularly surprised by the girls' names.
"It's all because of fashion and of course those names, Elizabeth, Margaret and Mary, those were names the royal family used so they were very, very popular in the past.
"People probably think they're a bit dated for a first name and they're more used as second names now," she said.
She said the boys' names have stood the test of time, or circled back into fashion a bit more.
"William, David and John, well they are still very, very good classic names, but other names have taken over, people sort of want something different."
Burkin said she has noticed a lot of boys with surnames as first names now, as well as a resurgence in biblical names.
- RNZ
