Independent US baby-name research
Baby-name history, analyzed — not just ranked
Explore 3,631 names with year-by-year Social Security records, pronunciation-aware spelling groups, transparent methodology and editorial analysis. Current data covers 1880–2024.
What this project adds to the public SSA files
The source data is a set of annual name, sex and count rows. The useful layer is what happens after that: conservative pronunciation grouping, longitudinal reconstruction, reproducible derived measures and explanations that separate what the records show from what they cannot establish.
Spelling groups you can audit
Equivalent spellings are combined only through conservative pronunciation rules. Neural pronunciation guesses can enrich display data, but they are deliberately kept out of automatic grouping decisions.
The whole curve, not one rank
Every published profile keeps the full yearly series behind its total. That makes plateaus, spikes, revivals and cross-gender changes visible instead of compressing a century of history into one position.
Transparent derived analysis
Trends, related-name suggestions and curated collections are built from documented rules. Known limitations, the publication threshold and correction process are public rather than hidden behind generated copy.
Research & analysis
Long-form pieces about how to interpret the record: why spelling-level rankings can mislead, how to recognize a revival, what a peak era means and where the data stops supporting a claim.
A Repeatable Data Method for Shortlisting Sibling Names
Sibling-name matching is subjective, but historical era, rhythm and initial letter make useful filters before taste takes over.
6 min read
Read analysis →A Unisex Name Is a Moving Target in Historical Data
A single male/female split is only a snapshot. Looking across decades shows whether a name is balanced, crossing over or merely used occasionally for the minority sex.
7 min read
Read analysis →How to Read the 2025 US Baby-Name Release Without Overreading the Ranking
The 2025 SSA release reports 2024 births. The familiar top-name table is useful, but spelling splits, counts and historical context change how it should be interpreted.
8 min read
Read analysis →How to Recognize a Baby-Name Revival in Historical Data
An old peak plus a newer rise is a different pattern from a brand-new trend. Here is how to distinguish a revival without turning a rule of thumb into a prediction.
7 min read
Read analysis →How to Tell If a Name Is Genuinely Popular or Just Having a Moment
Two names can sit at the same current rank and have completely different histories. The difference is visible in the shape of the curve.
7 min read
Read analysis →Nicknames and Formal Names: What the Birth Records Actually Show
A nickname can become a registered name in its own right. Historical counts make that shift visible, but the relationship is more complicated than a one-to-one lookup.
7 min read
Read analysis →One record, up close
A rotating example of the underlying product: a historical profile backed by the same grouped series used throughout the site.
Jimmy
402,059 recorded births in this pronunciation group, with the series beginning in 1880.
Inspect the full recordMost given names in the published record
Ranked by grouped recorded births across the available historical series.
Rising fastest
Largest recent-period increase against the period immediately before it.
Vintage revival candidates
Older peak, recent recorded use — open a profile to see the actual curve.
Curated data collections
Each collection has a published membership rule. They are discovery shortcuts into the same underlying records, not hand-written claims about meaning or personality.
Work with the records
Filter the published set
Syllables, length, peak era, first letter, recorded unisex share and other measurable properties.
Open →Start from a documented rule
Classics, revivals, biblical names and other collections generated from explicit membership criteria.
Open →Compare histories directly
Put up to four names on the same axes and see differences that rank and lifetime totals hide.
Open →