Ben

Last seen for girls in 1982 at #8,224 · #843 for boys in 2025, 292 births
Given to boys 99.5% of the time

Showing
Show data for
Peak · boys
1889 · 453 births
Debut · boys
305 births
In top 100 · boys
32 yrs
of 146 years
Total births · boys
85,349
since 1880

Ben over time

boys

Rank among boys' names. Click any year to open it.

#1#10#100#1,000rank188019001920194019601980200020201899peak #43, 1889boys
Hover or use arrow keys to read values by year; click or press Enter to open that year.

Gaps mean fewer than 5 babies received the name that year, so the SSA doesn't publish it.

Show data table
Yeargirlsboys
rankbirthsrankbirths
2025—#843292
2024—#800314
2023—#797311
2022—#765330
2021—#765327
2020—#768313
2019—#720339
2018—#691351
2017—#732327
2016—#698354
2015—#736331
2014—#717336
2013—#746310
2012—#743311
2011—#687344
2010—#692337
2009—#644389
2008—#613405
2007—#611409
2006—#551455
2005—#541447
2004—#525454
2003—#528440
2002—#542408
2001—#546394
2000—#559376
1999—#532391
1998—#559353
1997—#534372
1996—#578315
1995—#569322
1994—#613292
1993—#556333
1992—#535358
1991—#540352
1990—#515367
1989—#450437
1988—#435430
1987—#424426
1986—#411431
1985—#411428
1984—#386444
1983—#386431
1982#8,2247#387436
1981#8,1287#344522
1980#10,3925#349518
1979#7,3138#333549
1978#9,7505#311572
1977—#307626
1976—#303590
1975#9,0675#307603
1974—#325541
1973#8,4235#324535
1972#7,2926#309591
1971—#322578
1970—#316620
1969—#320578
1968—#299630
1967—#317553
1966—#282683
1965#6,5395#276727
1964#6,7675#260870
1963—#249945
1962#5,2937#2381,044
1961#4,8828#257934
1960#5,6966#257954
1959#4,3009#261933
1958—#261878
1957—#258855
1956—#268739
1955—#253735
1954#5,1486#256753
1953—#251746
1952#5,5635#255718
1951#4,8336#255687
1950#5,3015#250721
1949#3,6129#234761
1948—#214874
1947—#215887
1946—#210819
1945#4,5565#201717
1944—#199753
1943#4,6915#192835
1942—#186852
1941#4,4205#190767
1940—#178814
1939#3,1458#189709
1938#4,3425#172846
1937#4,2555#175814
1936#3,7016#169815
1935#2,30513#161891
1934#2,9239#169831
1933#2,40412#163868
1932—#156965
1931#3,4977#163912
1930#3,3458#154987
1929#2,30114#159957
1928#2,28415#156987
1927#2,25616#1561,011
1926#2,47414#1551,013
1925#2,19117#1531,041
1924#2,51414#1411,170
1923#2,73212#1481,049
1922#3,3799#1391,120
1921#3,4009#1391,124
1920#2,26316#1371,138
1919#2,38414#1261,215
1918#2,10217#1281,276
1917#1,77320#1291,128
1916#2,13315#1191,191
1915#3,1348#1131,263
1914#2,26510#1101,005
1913#2,8276#108809
1912#2,3607#102731
1911#1,9567#86467
1910—#79454
1909—#84358
1908—#78353
1907—#82314
1906—#82285
1905—#84290
1904#1,6596#83282
1903—#81259
1902—#79273
1901—#73259
1900—#73355
1899—#73259
1898—#69310
1897#1,2637#65291
1896—#69299
1895—#63324
1894—#62326
1893—#62321
1892—#60361
1891—#61302
1890—#54363
1889#1,0257#43453
1888—#47463
1887—#58305
1886—#56335
1885—#62292
1884—#52367
1883—#56306
1882—#55334
1881—#56289
1880—#58305
First appearance
1880

In the first year the SSA published name data, Ben was already there! It came in at #58, and was given to 305 baby boys.


Quietest stretch: 1890–1909, when fewer than 370 boys a year got the name.

Where Ben is popular in 1899

The SSA only publishes names by state from 1910 on.

See more about Ben
Momentum · boys
Holding steady
  • 43 spots since 2024 (#800 → #843)
  • 75 spots since 2020 (#768 → #843)
  • 107 spots since 2015 (#736 → #843)
  • Biggest jump: 44 spots in 1995 (#613 → #569)
  • Biggest drop: 65 spots in 1990 (#450 → #515)
Rise & fade · boys
9 yrs to peak
  • Debuted 1880
  • Peaked 1889 at #43 (453 births)
  • Not yet halved from its peak
Top of the charts · boys
Top 100 for 32 yrs
  • Top 10: never
  • Top 100: 32 yrs · run 1880–1911
  • Top 1,000: 146 yrs · run 1880–2025
Share of babies · boys
1 in 244
  • Highest: 1 in 244 boys born in 1889 were named Ben (0.41%)
  • Latest: 1 in 5,850 boys born in 2025 (0.02%)
Era · boys
The 1920s
  • 12.4% of all boys named Ben (10,610) were born in this decade
Show by decade
DecadeBirthsBest rankAvg rank
1880s3,449#43 (1889)#54
1890s3,156#54 (1890)#64
1900s3,028#73 (1900)#80
1910s9,539#79 (1910)#110
1920s10,610#137 (1920)#148
1930s8,638#154 (1930)#167
1940s8,079#178 (1940)#202
1950s7,765#250 (1950)#257
1960s7,918#238 (1962)#276
1970s5,805#303 (1976)#316
1980s4,503#344 (1981)#398
1990s3,455#515 (1990)#553
2000s4,177#525 (2004)#566
2010s3,340#687 (2011)#716
2020s1,887#765 (2022)#790

All figures count published births only (names given to at least 5 boys in a year). Registrations before 1937 are incomplete, so early shares and totals run low.

Ben in 1899

boys
#73
259 births · 1 in 410 boys

Top boys' names in 1899

  1. #1John6,990
  2. #2William6,086
  3. #3James4,597
  4. #4George4,018
  5. #5Charles3,147
  6. #6Joseph2,679
  7. #7Robert2,609
  8. #8Frank2,550
  9. #9Edward1,901
  10. #10Henry1,831
  11. #73Ben259
More about 1899

boys

106,211 boys got a published name in 1899; 1 in 410 of them was named Ben, which outranked 93.9% of the 1,200 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 34.3% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Ben
  1. #70Jessie261
  2. #70Jim261
  3. #72Martin260
  4. #73Ben259
  5. #74Donald258
  6. #74Eddie258
  7. #74Stanley258
Biggest movers since 1898
Risers
  1. ↑ 640Rogers#1,121 → #481
  2. ↑ 600Edna#1,121 → #521
  3. ↑ 545Giles#1,002 → #457
  4. ↑ 508Sarah#1,121 → #613
  5. ↑ 461Thaddeus#885 → #424
Fallers
  1. ↓ 566Jason#485 → #1,051
  2. ↓ 564Fitzhugh#364 → #928
  3. ↓ 508Oran#543 → #1,051
  4. ↓ 493Wilber#435 → #928
  5. ↓ 443Hosea#485 → #928

Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.

See the top 100 for 1899 →