Samuel

#10,917 for girls in 2025, 8 births · #18 for boys in 2025, 8,334 births
Given to boys 99.6% of the time

Showing
Show data for
Peak · boys
2024 · 8,355 births
Debut · boys
1,024 births
In top 100 · boys
146 yrs
of 146 years
Total births · boys
820,196
since 1880

Samuel over time

boys

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

#1#10#100rank188019001920194019601980200020201905boysat peak
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#10,9178#188,334
2024#12,1617#178,355
2023#9,61610#198,038
2022#11,2318#198,427
2021#13,4646#238,580
2020#7,55914#258,594
2019#9,73610#229,322
2018#8,61712#219,854
2017#7,09216#2110,449
2016#7,23016#2110,621
2015#8,93112#2310,905
2014#8,05314#2311,029
2013#8,13514#2511,141
2012#8,20814#2511,470
2011#14,8246#2611,366
2010#4,97428#2411,971
2009#6,54420#2412,181
2008#5,75024#2712,774
2007#7,73316#2513,367
2006#6,59219#2513,652
2005#4,95826#2114,271
2004#2,92754#2314,131
2003#4,94325#2314,691
2002#5,89719#2514,579
2001#3,94032#2614,813
2000#4,40027#2814,188
1999#4,87022#2714,049
1998#4,14227#2813,912
1997#4,50823#2714,237
1996#3,94227#3013,629
1995#3,67029#3312,440
1994#2,75244#3312,147
1993#2,93840#3711,711
1992#3,14436#4011,344
1991#3,81727#3911,234
1990#3,22734#4510,894
1989#2,93137#4710,107
1988#1,93463#459,564
1987#1,83863#508,576
1986#1,95256#527,579
1985#1,76064#547,009
1984#2,08148#556,362
1983#1,71563#546,195
1982#2,22045#566,014
1981#2,26544#546,036
1980#2,60336#546,014
1979#2,11247#555,687
1978#2,57233#575,394
1977#2,25740#605,257
1976#2,25537#595,025
1975#2,23237#614,619
1974#2,34833#604,672
1973#2,30933#664,267
1972#2,02239#664,213
1971#2,13738#664,407
1970#2,70526#624,558
1969#2,39629#644,430
1968#2,36027#664,123
1967#2,78120#694,232
1966#2,51923#814,155
1965#2,34526#844,395
1964#2,34827#864,462
1963#2,42425#874,520
1962#1,98934#884,552
1961#2,29927#894,667
1960#2,24627#914,711
1959#1,98532#864,953
1958#2,66319#855,051
1957#3,15014#825,236
1956#2,05828#745,585
1955#2,28023#715,535
1954#2,69517#715,634
1953#2,30121#705,423
1952#1,86129#675,647
1951#2,47417#675,476
1950#2,34118#625,227
1949#2,13421#625,356
1948#2,58915#705,002
1947#2,76914#725,110
1946#1,72327#704,523
1945#2,14916#613,957
1944#2,02718#623,946
1943#2,15117#624,143
1942#1,49730#594,190
1941#2,19015#653,538
1940#1,79220#653,364
1939#1,88118#633,254
1938#1,59623#623,243
1937#1,58023#663,027
1936#2,8579#672,893
1935#1,91717#623,149
1934#2,08715#663,137
1933#1,65821#613,111
1932#1,95717#563,411
1931#1,39428#563,379
1930#1,87519#553,531
1929#1,37031#533,567
1928#1,54127#523,844
1927#1,30337#494,189
1926#1,72124#484,180
1925#1,70025#464,405
1924#1,81123#454,591
1923#2,16917#454,578
1922#2,29116#434,600
1921#1,98820#444,754
1920#2,17217#444,654
1919#2,26415#434,472
1918#1,69023#434,772
1917#2,10016#424,490
1916#2,24614#414,399
1915#2,68810#394,351
1914#2,4349#353,703
1913#3,1875#362,850
1912#2,6346#302,602
1911—#301,398
1910—#321,129
1909—#32983
1908#2,1015#33960
1907—#32892
1906#1,7276#33783
1905#1,5387#30856
1904—#34727
1903—#31741
1902—#33702
1901—#33628
1900#1,7236#33877
1899—#30704
1898—#32749
1897—#28759
1896—#31734
1895—#25814
1894—#26776
1893#1,4375#20851
1892—#20902
1891#1,2136#20753
1890#1,3385#20815
1889—#20810
1888—#18931
1887—#18802
1886—#18870
1885—#18888
1884—#17945
1883—#17937
1882—#171,003
1881—#17919
1880—#171,024
First appearance
1880

In the first year the SSA published name data, Samuel was already there! It came in at #17, and was given to 1,024 baby boys.


Quietest stretch: 1885–1907, when fewer than 940 boys a year got the name.

Where Samuel is popular in 1905

The SSA only publishes names by state from 1910 on.

See more about Samuel
Momentum · boys
Rising
  • 1 spot since 2024 (#17 → #18)
  • 7 spots since 2020 (#25 → #18)
  • 5 spots since 2015 (#23 → #18)
  • Biggest jump: 12 spots in 1967 (#81 → #69)
  • Biggest drop: 9 spots in 1946 (#61 → #70)
Rise & fade · boys
144 yrs to peak
  • Debuted 1880
  • Peaked 2024 at #17 (8,355 births)
  • Not yet halved from its peak
Top of the charts · boys
Top 100 for 146 yrs
  • Top 10: never
  • Top 100: 146 yrs · run 1880–2025
  • Top 1,000: 146 yrs · run 1880–2025
Share of babies · boys
1 in 108
  • Highest: 1 in 108 boys born in 1880 were named Samuel (0.93%)
  • Latest: 1 in 205 boys born in 2025 (0.49%)
  • Its best rank, #17 in 2024, was only 1 in 206 (0.48%) — a smaller share of a much bigger birth year
Era · boys
The 2000s
  • 16.9% of all boys named Samuel (138,647) were born in this decade
  • Comeback: #17 (1880) → #91 (1960) → #17 (2024)
Show by decade
DecadeBirthsBest rankAvg rank
1880s9,129#17 (1880)#18
1890s7,857#20 (1892)#25
1900s8,149#30 (1905)#32
1910s34,166#30 (1912)#37
1920s43,362#43 (1922)#47
1930s32,135#55 (1930)#61
1940s43,129#59 (1942)#65
1950s53,767#62 (1950)#74
1960s44,247#64 (1969)#81
1970s48,099#55 (1979)#61
1980s73,456#45 (1988)#52
1990s125,597#27 (1997)#34
2000s138,647#21 (2005)#25
2010s108,128#21 (2016)#23
2020s50,328#17 (2024)#20

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.

Samuel in 1905

girls
#1,538
7 births · 1 in 41,660 girls
boys
#30
856 births · 1 in 155 boys

Top girls' names in 1905

  1. #1Mary16,067
  2. #2Helen6,811
  3. #3Margaret5,690
  4. #4Anna5,424
  5. #5Ruth5,068
  6. #6Elizabeth4,121
  7. #7Dorothy3,937
  8. #8Mildred3,758
  9. #9Marie3,643
  10. #10Alice3,610
  11. #1,538Samuel7

Top boys' names in 1905

  1. #1John8,059
  2. #2William6,495
  3. #3James6,042
  4. #4George4,256
  5. #5Charles3,608
  6. #6Robert3,410
  7. #7Joseph3,302
  8. #8Frank2,837
  9. #9Edward2,366
  10. #10Thomas2,135
  11. #30Samuel856
More about 1905

girls

291,617 girls got a published name in 1905; 1 in 41,660 of them was named Samuel, which outranked 31.2% of the 2,234 girls' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 19.9% of girls (24.6% in 1880, 7.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Samuel
  1. #1,420Violetta8
  2. #1,420Willye8
  3. #1,420Wynona8
  4. #1,538Samuel7
  5. #1,538Adda7
  6. #1,538Adelene7
  7. #1,538Agusta7
  8. #1,696Ader6
  9. #1,696Adlena6
  10. #1,696Albirda6

Tied with 157 names at #1,538; 3 shown. Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1904
Risers
  1. ↑ 1,052Orma#1,877 → #825
  2. ↑ 951Doretha#1,877 → #926
  3. ↑ 909Doshie#1,877 → #968
  4. ↑ 862Sydney#1,659 → #797
  5. ↑ 834Dulcie#1,659 → #825
Fallers
  1. ↓ 1,126Luberta#805 → #1,931
  2. ↓ 966Diane#965 → #1,931
  3. ↓ 966Pearly#965 → #1,931
  4. ↓ 843Melinda#853 → #1,696
  5. ↓ 765Izora#773 → #1,538

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

boys

132,306 boys got a published name in 1905; 1 in 155 of them was named Samuel, which outranked 97.9% of the 1,421 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 32.1% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Samuel
  1. #27Ralph938
  2. #28Jack907
  3. #29Earl904
  4. #30Samuel856
  5. #31Ernest845
  6. #32David838
  7. #33Theodore834
Biggest movers since 1904
Risers
  1. ↑ 590Ludwig#1,205 → #615
  2. ↑ 539Domenick#1,205 → #666
  3. ↑ 506Cloyd#1,205 → #699
  4. ↑ 506Conley#1,205 → #699
  5. ↑ 506Elgin#1,205 → #699
Fallers
  1. ↓ 621Urban#612 → #1,233
  2. ↓ 586Sammy#647 → #1,233
  3. ↓ 576Randall#515 → #1,091
  4. ↓ 553Santiago#538 → #1,091
  5. ↓ 547Duane#686 → #1,233

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

See the top 100 for 1905 →