Head to head · Boys' names
Brooks vs Nolan
#64 vs #65 in 2025
Brooks is a whisker ahead (#64 vs #65 in 2025), but the curves point different ways: Brooks is climbing the charts fast, Nolan is holding its place on the charts.
Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
The tale of the tape
On the charts, Brooks leads 4 measures of 6; Nolan leads 2.
Ranks, counts and years are measured in the official US birth record; the classroom and living figures are estimates computed from it. The dot marks the side each measure favours on the charts — more common, not better.
What the records say
146 years of US births, drawn on one scale
Two curves, one scale
Who owned which decade
- 1880s: Brooks #832, Nolan #839 — Brooks higher
- 1890s: Brooks #725, Nolan #745 — Brooks higher
- 1900s: Brooks #693, Nolan #577 — Nolan higher
- 1910s: Brooks #781, Nolan #491 — Nolan higher
- 1920s: Brooks #839, Nolan #471 — Nolan higher
- 1930s: Brooks #853, Nolan #417 — Nolan higher
- 1940s: Brooks #779, Nolan #441 — Nolan higher
- 1950s: Brooks #741, Nolan #520 — Nolan higher
- 1960s: Brooks #723, Nolan #633 — Nolan higher
- 1970s: Brooks #707, Nolan #580 — Nolan higher
- 1980s: Brooks #540, Nolan #392 — Nolan higher
- 1990s: Brooks #678, Nolan #251 — Nolan higher
- 2000s: Brooks #638, Nolan #155 — Nolan higher
- 2010s: Brooks #260, Nolan #79 — Nolan higher
- 2020s: Brooks #75, Nolan #62 — Nolan higher
Nolan stood higher in 13 of 15 decades; Nolan has held the lead since the 1900s.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Brooks | Nolan |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | #832 | #839 |
| 1890s | #725 | #745 |
| 1900s | #693 | #577 |
| 1910s | #781 | #491 |
| 1920s | #839 | #471 |
| 1930s | #853 | #417 |
| 1940s | #779 | #441 |
| 1950s | #741 | #520 |
| 1960s | #723 | #633 |
| 1970s | #707 | #580 |
| 1980s | #540 | #392 |
| 1990s | #678 | #251 |
| 2000s | #638 | #155 |
| 2010s | #260 | #79 |
| 2020s | #75 | #62 |
Average national rank across each decade. A dash means the name sat outside the recorded top of that decade.
Around the world
Brooks
- Canada#71
Nolan
- Canada#34
- France#78
National statistics offices, latest published year.
The names themselves
Meaning, roots, sound and the people who carried each
Where each name comes from
Brooks
Of the brooks — from a family that lived beside a stream
The root is Old English brōc, 'brook, stream'. The final -s marks the surname sense 'of the brook(s)', the same possessive ending seen in Wells, Rivers and Banks.
brōc (Old English) → Brook → Brooke → Brooks
How it traveled
The word behind it is very old: brōc was already Old English for a small stream, and medieval English records show families identified by the water they lived near — atte Broke, del Brok — which hardened into the hereditary surnames Brook, Brooke and Brooks. Those surnames traveled to North America with English settlers and, in the American habit of promoting family names to given names, Brooks began appearing as a first name for boys.
Nolan
From the Irish personal name Nuallán, a diminutive built on nuall
The Irish root nuall means 'shout, cry, wail', so Nuallán is literally a 'little shout'. The gloss usually attached to the surname Ó Nualláin is 'descendant of the champion' or 'the noble one' — an interpretation of that same root as a battle-cry or a name of renown. Both readings are seriously held; neither has pushed the other out.
nuall (Irish: shout, cry) → Nuallán → Ó Nualláin → Nolan
How it traveled
The name is Gaelic in origin: Ó Nualláin, 'descendant of Nuallán', a family long seated in what is now County Carlow. Like Brady, Ryan and Casey, it traveled with Irish families to North America as a surname, then joined the long American habit of moving Irish surnames to the front of the name.
Where a reading is contested the note says so — this page does not turn a guess into a fact. The chain is each name's recorded forms, oldest first; the story is its opening, told in full on the name's own page.
Out loud, and in short
Brooks
BROOKS
One syllable, rhyming with books. There is no competing pronunciation in English, and the spelling gives it away on sight.
- Brook — An informal trimming of the final -s; also stands alone as a given name in English, more often for girls in the Brooke spelling.
- Brooksie — A family diminutive, used at home rather than on paperwork.
Nolan
NOH-lən
Stress on the first syllable, second syllable relaxed. Said the same way in English and in French, which is unusual and convenient.
- Nolan — Most bearers use the full name in every setting; it is short enough to need no trimming.
- Nol — Informal, family-level clipping; rarely written down.
- Noley — Affectionate form used mainly with small children.
- No — Occasional playground shortening, sometimes avoided for obvious reasons.
Who has carried each name
Brooks
No documented entry for Brooks yet.
Nolan
Nolan Ryan (b. 1947) — Pitched a record seven no-hitters
Nolan Bushnell (b. 1943) — Founded Atari and launched the video game industry
Source: Wikidata — the one source on this page that is not an official agency.
Is it right for you
The differences that decide it, laid out by what you want
Choose by what you want
Choose Brooks if you want…
- a name on the way upup 28 places on the charts in five years
- a name with fewer syllablesBrooks is 1 syllable to Nolan's 2
- a long American recordBrooks was already in use when US records began in 1880
Choose Nolan if you want…
- a name holding steadyNolan is holding its place on the charts
- a name with more sound in itNolan runs 2 syllables, Brooks 1
- plenty of nickname options4 recorded short forms — Nolan, Nol and Noley
- a name that charts abroad tooNolan is on the national lists of Canada and France
Each line is a measured difference between the two names — a rank, a count, a recorded form — never a judgement of either. Save the one that answers your question; it lands on your shortlist.
The trade-offs, name by name
Brooks
Strengths
- Spelled the way an ordinary English word is spelled, so most people get it right on the first try after hearing it once.
- One syllable — easy to say, easy to call across a yard, and it sits cleanly in front of longer middle and last names.
- Documented as a given name for boys for well over a century, so the recent wave is a revival rather than an invention.
To consider
- Brooke, the near-identical spelling, is used mainly for girls in English. Expect the occasional form that comes back with an -e on the end.
- The final -s invites mix-ups: people may hear it as a surname, ask for a first name after it, or reverse the two on forms.
- It is climbing quickly. A boy named Brooks now will likely be the only one in his class, but may meet more of them as he grows up.
Nolan
Strengths
- Two syllables, seven letters, and phonetic — most people spell it right the first time after hearing it.
- Works as a first name and reads naturally as a surname, so it sits easily in professional life.
- Recognized in English and French alike, with the same pronunciation in both.
To consider
- Nolen, Nowlan and Noland all exist, so you may be asked which spelling you mean, even though Nolan is the standard one.
- It sits in a crowded sound-neighborhood with Noah, Nathan and Logan; the name itself is not everywhere, but the shape of it is familiar.
- Its rise is recent, so most people carrying it now are children and young adults rather than grown men — that will simply change with time.
Documented properties of each name — how it spells, travels and shortens — not opinions about the child.
With your last name
Say both in full. The notes are facts about letters and sound — a rhyme, a shared initial, the monogram — not a verdict on either name.
Type a last name to hear Brooks and Nolan in full.
Weighing the whole shortlist? Run the full comparison — up to eight names with your last name, initials, classroom projections and a printable report.
Decide together
Nobody names a baby alone
Still torn between Brooks and Nolan?
Put both to the vote.
One link to your partner, your parents, your sister. Each of them gets the two names, a one-tap answer and room to say why — and every reply lands in one place.
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More than two in the running? Settle it with a bracket or run the full comparison with your last name.
More head-to-heads
Same measures, different pair. Sixty more are dealt daily in the arena.
Lists that carry both names
Every list here names both Brooks and Nolan — the same style, ranked by the same records.
Brooks or Nolan — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Brooks or Nolan?
- Brooks, in 2025: Brooks ranked #64 with 4,877 babies; Nolan ranked #65 with 4,846 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Brooks or Nolan?
- Brooks. Over the last five years Brooks moved up 28 places; Nolan moved down 4 places.
- Which is the older name, Brooks or Nolan?
- Brooks was already in use when US records began in 1880; Nolan entered the US charts in 1881. On the American record, Brooks is the older name.
- How many people are named Brooks and Nolan?
- About 54,500 people named Brooks are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 128,000 people named Nolan are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Brookss or Nolans in the classroom?
- Brooks will almost certainly be the only one in school. Nolan will almost certainly be the only one in school.
US figures from the Social Security Administration, 1880–2025; international figures from national statistics agencies. Votes are battle voters on this site, not the birth record. Data & methodology
Keep playing
Sixty more head-to-heads are dealt in the arena every day — or line up Brooks, Nolan and the rest of your shortlist with your last name in one printable report.
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