boy's name
Brad
BRAD
- Origin English
- Gender Boy
- Syllables 1
- Letters 4
- Popularity Uncommon
- Births on record 86,068
Northern Ireland
#319
2005 births
Brad means broad clearing, shortened from Bradley — and the broad element is the same word as the modern English broad, one of the few Old English place-name terms still transparent. It holds 85,515 lifetime births in our records.
- Brad is a name of English origin.
- Peaked in 1960, when 2,651 babies were given the name.
- It has been falling over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 138,141 babies in the United States is given this name.
- 1 syllable, with the stress on syllable 1.
Brad 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 | 11 |
| 1910s | 16 |
| 1920s | 36 |
| 1930s | 178 |
| 1940s | 1,298 |
| 1950s | 16,466 |
| 1960s | 21,395 |
| 1970s | 22,737 |
| 1980s | 13,643 |
| 1990s | 4,375 |
| 2000s | 2,169 |
| 2010s | 782 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 187 |
What Brad means
Brad means the broad clearing, or wide woodland glade. The Old English joins brad, broad, to leah, a clearing, so the name describes a specific kind of open ground.
Where Brad comes from
Brad shortens Bradley, an English place name from brad, broad, joined to leah — a clearing in woodland. The brad is unchanged in modern English as broad, which is unusual: most Old English place-name elements are opaque now. The leah is one of the most common elements in English naming, ending Ashley, Shirley, Hayley and hundreds more. Bradley became an American given name in the twentieth century and Brad detached from it as a name in its own right.
Brad in use
Brad peaked in the United States in 1960, when 2,651 babies were registered, and is falling in our data. It charts in two of the seven markets we track — 4,260th in the United States on 24 births and 5287th in France — across 86,068 lifetime births. Our records carry it from 1900.
How popular is Brad?
In 2025, Brad was given to 24 babies in the United States. It is used consistently but remains uncommon.
Where Brad 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 Brad
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Brad also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Brad over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
Brad 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 Brad
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Brad — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Brad
What does the name Brad mean?
The broad clearing — Old English brad, broad, joined to leah, a woodland clearing.
Is Brad short for Bradley?
Yes, though it is widely registered as a name in its own right.
What does leah mean in place names?
A clearing in woodland. It ends Ashley, Shirley, Hayley and hundreds of others.
How popular is Brad?
4260th in the United States, down from a 1960 peak of 2,651 births.
Is Brad a girl's or a boy's name?
Brad is given almost entirely to boys in birth records.
How many syllables are in Brad?
Brad has 1 syllable.
Is Brad a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Brad currently ranks #4,260 in the United States. It has been falling over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.