Boy
Masculine
Boy is one of the odder entries in any English dictionary: the word has been in the language since the thirteenth century and nobody can say where it came from. It is also a genuine given name in Frisian and Dutch, unrelated to the English word, and both roads reach American records.
How old is the name Boy?
Boy first appears in US birth records in 1900 — 125 years ago. The typical Boy alive today was born around 2007, making them about 18 years old. About 900 people named Boy are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Boy most popular?
Boy peaked in 1903, reaching #1130 nationally. Today it ranks #5208, 4,078 places below that high. See the whole 1903 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
Origin, sound and short forms
The story of Boy
Frisian and Dutch families have used Boy as a name for centuries, from a short form of names beginning with Bo-, and it appears in the northern Netherlands and Schleswig steadily. In American records the name shows up around the turn of the twentieth century from both directions: with Dutch and German immigrants who brought the real name, and as the plain English word, given the way Baby and Sonny were given, sometimes to a child whose formal name had not been settled when the clerk asked.
Meaningscholars disagree
Not established
The English word has no settled etymology. Middle English boi meant a servant or a knave before it meant a male child, and derivations from Old French, Low German and a Latin word for a fetter have all been proposed without agreement. Separately, Frisian Boy is a real personal name from a short form of older Germanic names, and it is not the English word.
Pronouncing Boy
BOY
One syllable, exactly as the English word. Dutch says it the same way.
Nicknames for Boy
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
- 1900
- Most boys named
- 201942 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1130reached in 1903
- Change vs 2024
- −33.3%18 in 2025, from 27
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.
Boy in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Boy in Dutch — same name
- Boie in Frisian — related form
Strongest US states over the last decade: North Dakota, Georgia, Washington.
Boys among us
people named Boy are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 94,893 born in 2025 was named Boy
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
Fashion outlook
Boy sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Boy beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Boy in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- Three letters make it as short as a written name can be.
- It is a genuine Dutch and Frisian name as well as an English word.
- Everyone can say it and spell it after hearing it once.
- It is an ordinary English word for a child, which is a great deal for a grown man to carry.
- It has no recoverable meaning, so a curious child will find only a dictionary shrug.
- A one-syllable name gives nothing to shorten and no change of register.
Nobody names a baby alone.
Put Boy 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 Boy? Hide it among decoys and let them guess.
What they receive
Someone added a name to your list
Boy
Masculine · #5208 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Boys are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 900 people named Boy are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Boy in 2025?
- Boy ranks #5208 among US boy names in 2025, with 18 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Boy?
- About 1 in every 94,893 US boys born in 2025 was named Boy — 18 in all.
- Will my child share the name Boy with classmates?
- Boy will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Boy
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Rodger#5208 · Eusebio#5208 · Randal#5208 · Gable#5208 · Jessy#5208 · Kelby#5208 · Alexi#5208 · Jens#5208
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Boy? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Boy 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