boy's name
Colt
KOHLT
- Origin English
- Gender Boy
- Syllables 1
- Letters 4
- Popularity Top 1000 (US)
- Births on record 29,312
the United States
#285
2025 births
Colt is a boy's name taken from the English word for a young male horse, from the Old English colt. It was a surname before it was a first name, and its modern American use carries as much of the firearms manufacturer and the Western as it does the animal.
- Colt is a name of English origin.
- Peaked in 2019, when 1,833 babies were given the name.
- It has been rising over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 2,791 babies in the United States is given this name.
- First appears in US birth records in 1957.
- 1 syllable, with the stress on syllable 1.
Colt over time
Births per decade in the United States, 1950s 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 |
|---|---|
| 1950s | 25 |
| 1960s | 78 |
| 1970s | 141 |
| 1980s | 2,128 |
| 1990s | 2,218 |
| 2000s | 3,031 |
| 2010s | 11,656 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 8,603 |
What Colt means
Colt names a young male horse, under four years old in most usage. The name carries the qualities that go with that — youth, spirit, something not yet broken in — which is what families choosing it are reaching for.
Where Colt comes from
Colt comes from the Old English colt, which originally meant a young animal of any kind before narrowing to horses. It became a surname as a nickname for a lively or unruly person, recorded in England from the medieval period. Its American life is different: Samuel Colt's revolver, patented in 1836, made the surname a byword for the frontier, and the name's use as a given name is inseparable from the Western. It appears in our records from 1957 and peaked in 2019, and remains far more common in the United States than anywhere else.
Colt in use
Colt charts in four of the seven countries we track and peaked in 2019.
How popular is Colt?
In 2025, Colt was given to 1,188 babies in the United States, ranking #285 that year. It is a well-established, commonly used name.
Where Colt 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 Colt
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Colt also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Colt over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
Colt 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.
- Other forms
- Forms we hold no single language for — some are used across several, some are simply spelled differently.
- Kolt
Sibling names for Colt
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Colt — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Colt
What does the name Colt mean?
A young male horse, from the Old English colt, which originally meant a young animal of any kind.
Is Colt named after the gun?
Its American popularity is inseparable from Samuel Colt's revolver and the Western, though the word and the surname are much older.
Is Colt a boy's or a girl's name?
It is given almost entirely to boys.
How popular is the name Colt?
In 2025, Colt was given to 1,188 babies in the United States, ranking #285 that year. It is a well-established, commonly used name.
How many syllables are in Colt?
Colt has 1 syllable.
When was Colt most popular?
Colt peaked in 2019, when 1,833 babies were given the name. It has been rising over the past decade.
Is Colt a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Colt currently ranks #285 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.