boy's name
Felix
FEE-liks
- Origin Latin
- Gender Boy
- Syllables 2
- Letters 5
- Popularity Top 1000 (US)
- Births on record 179,150
the United States
#175
2025 births
Felix is a boy's name of Latin origin meaning "lucky" or "fortunate." It is the ordinary Latin adjective used as a name, adopted by early Christians who read it as blessed rather than merely fortunate.
- Felix is a name of Latin origin.
- Peaked in 2024, when 2,100 babies were given the name.
- It has been rising over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 1,599 babies in the United States is given this name.
- 2 syllables, with the stress on syllable 1.
Felix 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 | 863 |
| 1890s | 903 |
| 1900s | 1,108 |
| 1910s | 4,936 |
| 1920s | 6,082 |
| 1930s | 4,262 |
| 1940s | 4,350 |
| 1950s | 5,810 |
| 1960s | 5,797 |
| 1970s | 5,578 |
| 1980s | 5,353 |
| 1990s | 6,362 |
| 2000s | 7,621 |
| 2010s | 13,441 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 11,714 |
What Felix means
Felix means lucky, fortunate or happy. The Latin word covers good fortune and the contentment that follows it together, so the name means both blessed and glad rather than choosing between them.
Where Felix comes from
Felix is the Latin adjective felix, fortunate, from a root meaning fruitful or productive — the same root as felicity and, more distantly, female, through the sense of one who nourishes. The Roman general Sulla took it as a surname, claiming divine favor. Early Christians adopted it eagerly because it could be read as blessed by God, and there are more saints named Felix than almost any other name, along with four popes. It is one of very few Roman names to have remained in continuous use for two thousand years without a gap.
Felix in use
Our data shows Felix peaking in 2024 and still rising, at 59 in England and Wales. It first appears in our records in 1880 and has never dropped out — that unbroken run across a century and a half is unusual, and it is what a genuinely durable name looks like as opposed to a revived one.
How popular is Felix?
In 2025, Felix was given to 2,074 babies in the United States, ranking #175 that year. It is a well-established, commonly used name.
Where Felix 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.
How Felix is spelled
Birth registers count each spelling separately, so every one has its own ranking.
| Spelling | What it is | Births on record |
|---|---|---|
| Félix | Félix is Felix written with an acute accent in France, and the spelling parents there overwhelmingly choose: it ranks #111 in France, against #1,230 for Felix. | 52,154 |
Names that peaked alongside Felix
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Felix also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Felix over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
Felix 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 Felix
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Felix — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Felix
What does the name Felix mean?
Felix means "lucky" or "fortunate" — it is the ordinary Latin adjective used as a name.
Is Felix a saint's name?
Many times over. There are more saints named Felix than almost any other name, along with four popes.
Is Felix an old name?
One of the oldest in continuous use. Our records show it unbroken since 1880, and it was current in Rome two thousand years ago.
How popular is the name Felix?
In 2025, Felix was given to 2,074 babies in the United States, ranking #175 that year. It is a well-established, commonly used name.
Is Felix a girl's or a boy's name?
Felix is given almost entirely to boys in birth records.
How many syllables are in Felix?
Felix has 2 syllables.
When was Felix most popular?
Felix peaked in 2024, when 2,100 babies were given the name. It has been rising over the past decade.
Is Felix a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Felix currently ranks #29 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.