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BabyNames
Boy name#367 of boy names

Beau

Pronounced B AW1 (ARPABET)

  • 1 syllable
  • Peaked 2024
  • 118 years in use
  • 5 spellings
Compare

How popular is Beau?

Beau is a boys' name, and first appears in 1907. It has been given to 80,509 children — the 367th most common boys' name on record.

It is climbing hard: about three times as many births in the past decade as in the one before it. Its best single year was 2024, when 5,663 children were given it.

Five other spellings are counted in that total — Bo, Beaux, Boe and two more — because they are pronounced identically.

02,5005,0007,50010,000192019401960198020002020
2024Boys: 5,663Girls: 93

Spelling variants

These spellings sound identical to Beau and are counted together with it, which is why the totals here are higher than a single-spelling count.

  • Bo
  • Beaux
  • Boe
  • Bow
  • Bowe

Characteristics

  • 1 syllable
Phonetic detail
Pronunciations:
B AW1 · B OW1
Stress pattern:
1 · 1
Syllables:
1

Stress digits mark unstressed (0), primary (1) and secondary (2) syllables.

Names like Beau

Same first letter and syllable count, peaking around the same time.

Sibling names for Beau

Names from the same era with a matching rhythm but a different initial.

Frequently asked questions

How popular is the name Beau?
Beau ranks 367th among boys' names in US records, with 80,509 births since 1907. Over the past decade it accounts for 39,630.
Is Beau a unisex name?
No. Beau is recorded almost entirely as a boys' name; births to the other gender are too few to register as a share.
When was Beau most popular?
2024, when 5,663 children were given the name. It has been in use for 118 years and is still recorded as of 2024.
How else is Beau spelled?
Bo, Beaux, Boe, Bow, Bowe. All of these sound the same and are counted together in the totals on this page.