boy's name
Franklin
FRANK-lin
- Origin English
- Gender Boy
- Syllables 2
- Letters 8
- Popularity Top 1000 (US)
- Births on record 146,809
the United States
#359
2025 births
Franklin means a freeholder — a man who owned his land but held no noble rank, a specific medieval class. England and Wales ranks it 290th, above the United States at 359th, and our data marks it reviving.
- Franklin is a name of English origin.
- Peaked in 1933, when 5,387 babies were given the name.
- After peaking in the 1930s it fell out of use, and is now climbing again — a classic revival.
- Today about 1 in 3,647 babies in the United States is given this name.
- 2 syllables, with the stress on syllable 1.
Franklin 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 | 1,098 |
| 1890s | 986 |
| 1900s | 1,196 |
| 1910s | 8,032 |
| 1920s | 12,596 |
| 1930s | 26,519 |
| 1940s | 19,404 |
| 1950s | 17,091 |
| 1960s | 13,990 |
| 1970s | 9,424 |
| 1980s | 8,295 |
| 1990s | 7,146 |
| 2000s | 5,492 |
| 2010s | 6,353 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 4,884 |
What Franklin means
Franklin means a free landowner. The Middle English frankeleyn named a precise social rank: free, landholding, and below the gentry, so the word describes a legal position rather than a quality.
Where Franklin comes from
Franklin is the Middle English frankeleyn, a freeholder — a man who owned land outright without being noble, built on the same Frankish root that gives frank and France, where the tribe's privileged status turned its name into a word for freedom. Chaucer's Franklin is one of the Canterbury pilgrims and the portrait is exactly of that class: wealthy, hospitable, not gentry. Benjamin Franklin carried it as a surname; Franklin D. Roosevelt carried it as a given name inherited from his mother's family, and the Roosevelt association is why most people assume the name is American.
Franklin in use
Franklin peaked in the United States in 1933, when 5,387 babies were registered — the year Franklin D. Roosevelt took office — and our data marks it reviving. It now ranks 290th in England and Wales on 158 births, 359th in the United States on 909 and 6069th in France, across 146,809 lifetime births. England and Wales ranking it above America is the reverse of what the Roosevelt association would predict.
How popular is Franklin?
In 2025, Franklin was given to 909 babies in the United States, ranking #359 that year. It is a well-established, commonly used name.
Where Franklin 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 Franklin
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Franklin also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Franklin over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
2 nicknames for Franklin
Each one is a name in its own right — the figure underneath is how it is doing today, so you can see which short forms are rising and which have faded.
Franklin 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 Franklin
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Franklin — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Franklin
What does the name Franklin mean?
A freeholder — a man who owned his land but held no noble rank.
Is Franklin related to the word frank?
Yes, both from the Frankish tribe, whose privileged status turned its name into a word for freedom.
Was Franklin Roosevelt named after Benjamin Franklin?
No — he inherited it from his mother's family, where it was already a given name.
Is Franklin coming back?
Our data marks it reviving, and England and Wales ranks it 290th — above the United States.
How popular is the name Franklin?
In 2025, Franklin was given to 909 babies in the United States, ranking #359 that year. It is a well-established, commonly used name.
Is Franklin a girl's or a boy's name?
Franklin is given almost entirely to boys in birth records.
How many syllables are in Franklin?
Franklin has 2 syllables.
When was Franklin most popular?
Franklin peaked in 1933, when 5,387 babies were given the name. After peaking in the 1930s it fell out of use, and is now climbing again — a classic revival.
What are the nicknames for Franklin?
Franklin is usually shortened to Frank and Lin.
Is Franklin a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Franklin currently ranks #290 in the United States. After peaking in the 1930s it fell out of use, and is now climbing again — a classic revival. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.