Classic Names

Names that have never really left. They rise and fall within a band rather than disappearing, which makes them the safest choice on the site and the hardest to say anything surprising about.

Rankings for

530 names, most popular first in United States

Very Rare Rare Uncommon

Girls Boys Unisex

Winston Winston is a boy's name of English origin meaning "Wine's settlement", from an Old English personal name plus tun.
Boy English #382 in US
Stephen Stephen is a boy's name from the Greek for crown or garland, borne by the first Christian martyr.
Boy Greek #383 in US
Khalil Khalil is a boy's name of Arabic origin meaning "friend" — specifically a close and trusted one.
Boy Arabic #384 in US
Cesar Cesar is a boy's name from the Roman family name Caesar, whose own meaning the Romans could not agree on.
Boy Latin #385 in US
Fernando Fernando means bold journey, and it is Germanic rather than Spanish — the Visigoths brought it to Iberia, where it became the royal name of Castile and Aragon and then traveled to the Americas.
Boy Spanish #387 in US
Carmen Carmen has two unrelated sources — the Latin word for a song, and a Spanish Marian title from Mount Carmel in Israel.
Girl Spanish #390 in US
Florence Florence is a girl's name of Latin origin meaning "blossoming" or "flourishing."
Girl Latin #391 in US
Raphaël Raphaël is a boy's name of Hebrew origin meaning "God has healed," borne by one of the three archangels named in scripture.
Boy French #394 in US
Melany Melany is a girl's name of Greek origin meaning "black" or "dark".
Girl Greek #398 in US
Marcelo Marcelo is a boy's name of Latin origin meaning "of Mars".
Boy Latin #398 in US
Edwin Edwin is a boy's name from Old English meaning rich friend, borne by a Northumbrian king whose fortress may have given Edinburgh its name.
Boy English #399 in US
Lauren Lauren is a girl's name of Latin origin meaning "laurel," which became a women's name because a film studio invented one.
Girl English #401 in US
Hector Hector is a boy's name of Greek origin meaning "holding fast," borne by the Trojan prince who is the most sympathetic figure in the Iliad.
Boy Greek #409 in US
Annalise Annalise is a girl's name of German origin, a compound of Anna and Liese.
Girl German #409 in US
Rhys Rhys is a boy's name of Welsh origin meaning "ardor" or "enthusiasm," and it gave English the surname Price by way of a Welsh word for son.
Boy Welsh #410 in US
Eduardo Eduardo means wealthy guardian, and it is one of very few Old English names that spread across the Catholic world — carried by Edward the Confessor's cult rather than by English settlement.
Boy Spanish #411 in US
Reed Reed is a boy's name of English origin meaning "red" — a nickname for someone with red hair or a ruddy complexion.
Boy English #418 in US
Conrad Conrad set its American peak in the most recent year we hold, 2025, on 770 births — a name our records carry from 1880 reaching its high point a hundred and forty-five years later.
Boy German #419 in US
Melissa Melissa is a girl's name of Greek origin meaning "bee," and it was the title of the priestesses who served Demeter.
Girl Greek #420 in US
Francis Francis is a boy's name of Germanic origin meaning "Frenchman" or "free man."
Boy Germanic #420 in US
Dorothy Dorothy is a girl's name of Greek origin meaning "gift of God."
Girl Greek #421 in US
Julius Julius means downy-bearded, and the family claimed descent from Venus — the Julii traced themselves to Iulus, son of Aeneas, which is the genealogy Virgil wrote the Aeneid to dignify.
Boy Latin #424 in US
Veronica Veronica is a girl's name from a Latin phrase meaning true image, and the saint behind it was invented to explain a relic — the cloth came first, and the woman was named after it.
Girl Latin #427 in US
Nehemiah Nehemiah is a boy's name of Hebrew origin meaning "the Lord comforts".
Boy Hebrew #429 in US
Pablo Pablo is a boy's name of Latin origin meaning "small" or "humble," the Spanish form of Paul.
Boy Spanish #431 in US
Lewis Lewis is a boy's name of Germanic origin meaning "famous warrior," the English form of Louis.
Boy English #433 in US
Moshe Moshe is a boy's name of Hebrew origin, the original form of Moses.
Boy Hebrew #435 in US
Frederick Frederick is a boy's name of Germanic origin meaning "peaceful ruler."
Boy Germanic #436 in US
Mario Mario is a boy's name from a Roman family name of uncertain meaning, and the video game character was named after a real landlord — Mario Segale, who owned the warehouse Nintendo rented in Seattle.
Boy Italian #438 in US
Sergio Sergio means servant, from a Roman family name that is probably Etruscan — and Virgil gave the Sergii a Trojan ancestor, which is the Aeneid doing genealogical work for Rome's aristocracy.
Boy Italian #441 in US
Valentino Valentino is a boy's name of Latin origin meaning "strong" or "healthy".
Boy Latin #444 in US
Prince Prince is a boy's name taken from the title, from the Latin princeps — literally "the one who takes first place".
Boy Latin #447 in US
Madeleine Madeleine is a girl's name meaning "of Magdala," a fishing town on the Sea of Galilee, and it is a place name rather than a description.
Girl French #454 in US
Pedro Pedro means stone, and the name records a nickname Jesus gave — Simon was renamed Cephas in Aramaic, which Greek translated as Petros, so the pun on rock survives through three languages.
Boy Spanish #456 in US
Johnny Johnny is a boy's name, the pet form of John, meaning God is gracious.
Boy English #458 in US
Elisa Elisa means my God is an oath, shortened from Elizabeth, and France ranks it 202nd — its strongest market, ahead of England and Wales at 377th, Ireland at 382nd and the United States at 458th.
Girl Italian #458 in US
Rocco Rocco is a boy's name of Germanic origin, generally read from a root meaning rest or repose.
Boy Germanic #459 in US
Alicia Alicia is a girl's name of Germanic origin meaning "noble," a Latinate form of Alice.
Girl Germanic #460 in US
Helen Helen is a girl's name from Greek whose meaning is not settled, though torch and shining are the usual readings.
Girl Greek #461 in US
Esteban Esteban is a boy's name of Greek origin meaning "crown," the Spanish form of Stephen, whose bearer was the first Christian martyr.
Boy Spanish #461 in US
Meredith Meredith is a Welsh man's name that turned female in America — 95 percent of the births in our records are female, and the Welsh Maredudd it comes from was borne by princes of Deheubarth.
Girl Welsh #469 in US
Felicity Felicity is a girl's name of Latin origin meaning "happiness" or "good fortune."
Girl Latin #473 in US
Alison Alison means little Alice, and Alice means noble — but the Norman name behind it is a heavy compression of the Germanic Adalheidis, so the noble is all that survived of a longer compound.
Girl French #477 in US
Edgar Edgar is a boy's name meaning wealthy spear, and it is one of very few Old English names still in wide use.
Boy English #487 in US
Sean Sean is a boy's name of Irish origin meaning "God is gracious," the Irish form of John by way of Norman French.
Boy Irish #489 in US
Arjun Arjun is a boy's name of Sanskrit origin meaning "bright", "white" or "silver".
Boy Indian #490 in US
Amirah Amirah is a girl's name of Arabic origin meaning "princess" or "commander".
Girl Arabic #490 in US
Maxine Maxine is a girl's name of Latin origin meaning "greatest," a feminine form of Maximus.
Girl French #496 in US

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A style is our reading of a name. A decade is the register — the names children were actually given, in order, with the counts.

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