boy's name
Greg
GREG
- Origin English
- Gender Boy
- Syllables 1
- Letters 4
- Popularity Uncommon
- Births on record 82,931
Northern Ireland
#311
2000 births
Greg means watchful, and the Greek is a command rather than a description — gregorein means stay awake, which early Christians took as an instruction about the second coming. Its strongest market is the United States, at 4784th.
- Greg is a name of English origin.
- Peaked in 1961, when 5,409 babies were given the name.
- It has been falling over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 157,878 babies in the United States is given this name.
- First appears in US birth records in 1915.
- 1 syllable, with the stress on syllable 1.
Greg over time
Births per decade in the United States, 1910s 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 |
|---|---|
| 1910s | 7 |
| 1920s | 53 |
| 1930s | 242 |
| 1940s | 5,101 |
| 1950s | 18,245 |
| 1960s | 36,513 |
| 1970s | 11,477 |
| 1980s | 3,608 |
| 1990s | 1,369 |
| 2000s | 736 |
| 2010s | 353 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 145 |
What Greg means
Greg means watchful, or vigilant. The Greek verb means to be awake and alert, so the name is closer to an instruction than to a description of temperament.
Where Greg comes from
Greg shortens Gregory, from the Greek Gregorios, built on gregorein — to watch or stay awake. The sense is specific: early Christian writing uses it for keeping vigil in expectation, and the name was popular among monastics for that reason. Sixteen popes took it, including Gregory XIII, who reformed the calendar in 1582 — which is why the one most of the world uses is the Gregorian.
Greg in use
Greg peaked in the United States in 1961, when 5,409 babies were registered, and is falling in our data. It charts in three of the seven markets we track — 4,784th in the United States on 21 births and 5906th in France — across 82,931 lifetime births. Our records carry it from 1900.
How popular is Greg?
In 2025, Greg was given to 21 babies in the United States. It is used consistently but remains uncommon.
Where Greg 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 Greg
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Greg also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Greg over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
Greg 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 Greg
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Greg — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Greg
What does the name Greg mean?
Watchful — the Greek gregorein, to stay awake.
Why is the calendar Gregorian?
Gregory XIII reformed it in 1582, and his version is the one most of the world uses.
Is Greg short for Gregory?
Yes, and it is widely registered as a name in its own right.
How popular is Greg?
4784th in the United States, down from a 1961 peak of 5,409 births.
Is Greg a girl's or a boy's name?
Greg is given almost entirely to boys in birth records.
How many syllables are in Greg?
Greg has 1 syllable.
Is Greg a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Greg currently ranks #2,428 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.