Author
Masculine
One letter separates Arthur from a job description. Author is an ordinary English noun, and a child carrying it as a name will be explaining that it is a name for the rest of their life. The record shows it in use from the very beginning of American record-keeping, so this is not a modern novelty.
How old is the name Author?
Author was already in use when US birth records began in 1880 — it is at least 145 years old. The typical Author alive today was born around 1936, making them about 89 years old. About 700 people named Author are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Author most popular?
Author peaked in 1883, reaching #556 nationally. See the whole 1883 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From Arthur to Author
The story of Author
The h in the English word does not belong there. Latin had auctor, from a verb meaning to increase or to cause to grow, and the same root gives augment, auction and the month of August. Old French wore it down to autor and English borrowed it as autour, with no h anywhere. Then late medieval scribes, who added h to a great many words on the theory that anything learned was probably Greek, put one in — and unlike most of their inventions this one stuck, was printed, and became standard. So the word for a writer contains a letter inserted by copyists who were guessing, which is a reasonably good joke at the profession's expense.
Meaningnot established
Not established
As a form of Arthur it inherits nothing, because that name's own origin has never been established. As the English word it means a writer, which is a description rather than a name and carries no older sense that would apply to a person.
How the name formed
- Arthur
- Author
Pronouncing Author
AW-thur
Two syllables with the stress at the front, said as the common noun is said rather than as Arthur is. That is the one place the spelling genuinely changes the name.
Nicknames for Author
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1880
- Most boys named
- 192254 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #556reached in 1883
- Change vs 1992
- −37.5%5 in 1995, from 8
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Authors among us
people named Author are estimated to be alive in the US today
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
Questions parents actually ask
Fashion outlook
Author sits outside the current charts, and that is its own kind of answer: naming cycles can only date the names they carried up. A name this rare has no decade stamped on it — it cannot go out of fashion, because it was never in.
Based on 146 years of naming cycles. How we read them
The trade-off
- It is instantly memorable and nobody who hears it forgets it.
- The spelling and the sound agree completely with nothing to explain.
- Art works as a short form and carries none of the difficulty.
- It is a common English noun and will be read as one every time.
- It is one letter from a very familiar name and will be assumed to be a misspelling of it.
- The generation that used it is now elderly.
Nobody names a baby alone.
Put Author to the vote.
Add it to a family vote or a couple’s swipe deck — the other person gets one card, a simple answer and room to say why. No app, no account for them.
Only the people you invite can see your list.
Already decided on Author? Hide it among decoys and let them guess.
What they receive
Someone added a name to your list
Author
Masculine
Frequently asked
- How many Authors are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 700 people named Author are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Author in 2025?
- Author is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 boy names.
- Will my child share the name Author with classmates?
- Author will almost certainly be the only one in school.
More A names
The most-given names starting with A, all years combined.
Anthony#46 · Andrew#73 · Alexander#30 · Aaron#80 · Adam#101 · Arthur#87 · Albert#614 · Austin#113
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Author? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Author and another name?
See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.
Compare side by sideIn a hurry? Just pick a winner — one tap, no sign-up, and you see how everyone else voted.
Weighing a whole shortlist? Add the rest in the builder, or settle it with a bracket.
Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
No advertising trackers and no data sellinghow we handle your dataindependent and founder-run, about Name Battle