boy's name
Lincoln
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- Origin English
- Gender Boy
- Syllables 2
- Letters 7
- Popularity Top 100 (US)
- Births on record 123,768
the United States
#69
2025 births
Lincoln is a boy's name from the English city, whose name combines the Brittonic lindo, meaning pool, with the Latin colonia, a Roman settlement for retired soldiers. It means, quite literally, "the colony by the pool."
- Lincoln is a name of English origin.
- Peaked in 2017, when 8,443 babies were given the name.
- It has been rising over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 694 babies in the United States is given this name.
- 2 syllables, with the stress on syllable 1.
Lincoln 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 | 94 |
| 1890s | 141 |
| 1900s | 176 |
| 1910s | 905 |
| 1920s | 1,302 |
| 1930s | 852 |
| 1940s | 845 |
| 1950s | 818 |
| 1960s | 1,260 |
| 1970s | 1,318 |
| 1980s | 1,174 |
| 1990s | 1,745 |
| 2000s | 8,914 |
| 2010s | 53,191 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 34,233 |
What Lincoln means
Lincoln means the Roman colony at the pool, joining a Celtic word for a lake or pool to the Latin word for a settlement of veterans. It is one of the few English place names to preserve both a Celtic and a Latin element side by side.
Where Lincoln comes from
Lincoln comes from the Roman Lindum Colonia. Lindum derives from the Brittonic lindo, meaning pool or lake, referring to a broad stretch of the River Witham; colonia was the Latin term for a settlement established for retired legionaries, and Lincoln was granted that status in the first century. The two words compressed over centuries into Lincoln. The name reached given-name use in America almost entirely through Abraham Lincoln, and United States birth records show it rising sharply in the twenty-first century, long after his presidency, as part of the broader turn toward surnames and presidential names.
Lincoln in use
Lincoln preserves both a Celtic and a Latin word in a single name — a pool and a Roman veterans' colony.
How popular is Lincoln?
In 2025, Lincoln was given to 4,778 babies in the United States, ranking #69 that year. It is one of the most popular names in the United States.
Where Lincoln 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 Lincoln
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Lincoln also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Lincoln over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
1 nickname for Lincoln
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.
Lincoln 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.
- Lincon
Sibling names for Lincoln
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Lincoln — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Lincoln
What does the name Lincoln mean?
Lincoln means "colony by the pool," from the Brittonic lindo, pool, and the Latin colonia.
Is Lincoln named after Abraham Lincoln?
Its use as a first name in America comes almost entirely from the president, though the name is a much older English city name.
What are nicknames for Lincoln?
Linc is the standard short form.
How popular is the name Lincoln?
In 2025, Lincoln was given to 4,778 babies in the United States, ranking #69 that year. It is one of the most popular names in the United States.
Is Lincoln a girl's or a boy's name?
Lincoln is given almost entirely to boys in birth records.
How many syllables are in Lincoln?
Lincoln has 2 syllables.
When was Lincoln most popular?
Lincoln peaked in 2017, when 8,443 babies were given the name. It has been rising over the past decade.
Is Lincoln a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Lincoln currently ranks #67 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.