boy's name
Brick
BRIK (English)
- Origin English
- Gender Boy
- Syllables 1
- Letters 5
- Popularity Rare
- Births on record 459
Brick is a rare boy's name taken from the English word for a block of baked clay. It's a word and nickname name rather than a traditional one, and it's best known from Brick Pollitt in Tennessee Williams's play Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.
- Brick is a name of English origin.
- Peaked in 2011, when 24 babies were given the name.
- Its usage has held steady over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 473,709 babies in the United States is given this name.
- First appears in US birth records in 1951.
- 1 syllable, with the stress on syllable 1.
Brick Over Time
Births per decade in the United States, 1950s to 2020s. The striped bar is the 2020s, which so far covers 2020 to 2025.
Show the numbers
| Decade | Births |
|---|---|
| 1950s | 37 |
| 1960s | 31 |
| 1970s | 41 |
| 1980s | 41 |
| 1990s | 55 |
| 2000s | 65 |
| 2010s | 140 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 49 |
What Brick Means
Brick means a block of fired clay used for building. As a nickname it suggests someone solid and sturdy, and that is the sense most parents and fiction writers have in mind.
Where Brick Comes From
English took the word brick in the fifteenth century from Middle Dutch and Old French, where it was related to words for a piece or something broken off. The word was a nickname long before it was a given name, and in nineteenth-century slang a good, reliable person was called a brick. There's a separate surname Brick, an Irish name from Ó Bruic, built on broc, a badger, and rooted in Munster. A few American parents have used Brick as a first name, usually drawing on the word or on the characters who carry it.
Brick in Use
Besides Brick Pollitt, screen audiences know Brick Tamland, the weatherman in the Anchorman films, and Brick Heck of the sitcom The Middle. Word names like this one suit parents looking for a short, blunt sound.
How Popular Is Brick?
In 2025, Brick was given to 7 babies in the United States. It is a rare choice.
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 Brick
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents Who Like Brick Also Like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Brick over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
How to Say Brick
- English BRIK
Sibling Names for Brick
Names from the same era that do not rhyme or share an initial with Brick — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common Questions About Brick
What does the name Brick mean?
It's the English word for a block of baked clay, and as a nickname it suggests someone solid.
Is Brick a real first name?
It's rare but genuine, used mainly as a nickname or word name for boys.
Who is Brick in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof?
Brick Pollitt is the play's central character, a former athlete in Tennessee Williams's drama.
How popular is the name Brick?
In 2025, Brick was given to 7 babies in the United States. It is a rare choice.
Is Brick a girl's or a boy's name?
Brick is given almost entirely to boys in birth records.
How many syllables are in Brick?
Brick has 1 syllable.
When was Brick most popular?
Brick peaked in 2011, when 24 babies were given the name. Its usage has held steady over the past decade.
Is Brick a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Brick currently ranks #9,964 in the United States. Its usage has held steady over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.