boy's name
Ace
AYSS
- Origin Latin
- Gender Boy
- Syllables 1
- Letters 3
- Popularity Top 1000 (US)
- Births on record 29,274
the United States
#164
2025 births
Ace is a boy's name of Latin origin meaning "one" or "unity." It comes from as, a Roman coin and unit — and its modern sense of excellence comes from the playing card, not the other way round.
- Ace is a name of Latin origin.
- Peaked in 2022, when 2,517 babies were given the name.
- It has been rising over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 1,473 babies in the United States is given this name.
- First appears in US birth records in 1882.
- 1 syllable, with the stress on syllable 1.
Ace over time
Births per decade in the United States, 1880s to 2020s. The striped bar is the 2020s, still in progress — it covers 2020 to 2025, not a full ten years.
Show the numbers
| Decade | Births |
|---|---|
| 1880s | 56 |
| 1890s | 35 |
| 1900s | 33 |
| 1910s | 156 |
| 1920s | 192 |
| 1930s | 176 |
| 1940s | 199 |
| 1950s | 180 |
| 1960s | 153 |
| 1970s | 218 |
| 1980s | 336 |
| 1990s | 371 |
| 2000s | 1,733 |
| 2010s | 8,910 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 13,735 |
What Ace means
Ace means one, or a single unit. The sense of the best or an expert is a later development from the card game, where the ace outranks everything else.
Where Ace comes from
Ace comes from the Latin as, a Roman copper coin and the basic unit of weight, by way of the Old French as, the one on a die. The playing-card ace took the name as the single-pip card, and because it ranked highest in most games the word came to mean the best of something — the First World War use for a fighter pilot with five kills fixed that sense. A separate Germanic name Aze or Ace existed in medieval England, from adal, noble, and some bearers descend from that instead.
Ace in use
Our data shows Ace peaking in 2022 and still rising, and it first appears in our records in 1882 — long before the aviation sense, reflecting the older Germanic name rather than the card. It belongs to the current group of very short boys' names alongside Kit, Jax and Otto.
How popular is Ace?
In 2025, Ace was given to 2,250 babies in the United States, ranking #164 that year. It is a well-established, commonly used name.
Where Ace is used
US figures omit any name given to fewer than five babies in a year, so the rarest names are absent from the source rather than absent from use. Data & sources.
Names that peaked alongside Ace
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Ace also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Ace over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
Ace in other languages
The same name as it is spelled elsewhere — not shortenings, and not different names that merely sound alike. Each one has its own record here.
Sibling names for Ace
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Ace — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Ace
What does the name Ace mean?
Ace means "one" or "unity," from the Latin as, a Roman coin and unit.
Does Ace mean the best?
That sense comes from the playing card, which outranks the rest — fixed by the First World War use for a fighter pilot with five kills.
Is Ace a real name?
Yes. Our records show it in birth data from 1882, and a separate medieval Germanic name Aze also existed.
How popular is the name Ace?
In 2025, Ace was given to 2,250 babies in the United States, ranking #164 that year. It is a well-established, commonly used name.
Is Ace a girl's or a boy's name?
Ace is given almost entirely to boys in birth records.
How many syllables are in Ace?
Ace has 1 syllable.
When was Ace most popular?
Ace peaked in 2022, when 2,517 babies were given the name. It has been rising over the past decade.
Is Ace a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Ace currently ranks #164 in the United States. It has been rising over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.