Cruz
Masculine · Latin roots · “cross”
Cruz is given to both — 30,792 boys and 4,232 girls since 1880. See Cruz as a girl nameSee other names given to both
Cruz is the Spanish word for the cross, carried first as a surname by families who lived beside a wayside crucifix or who took the name in devotion to the Holy Cross. It is one syllable, four letters, and it lands the same way in Spanish and in English — a short vowel and a clean exit. Few names this brief have been in continuous written use for as long.
How old is the name Cruz?
Cruz was already in use when US birth records began in 1880 — it is at least 145 years old. The typical Cruz is a kid of about 12 — this name's wave is very recent. About 28,000 people named Cruz are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Cruz most popular?
Cruz peaked in 2013, reaching #279 nationally. Today it ranks #331, 52 places below that high. See the whole 2013 chart.
Where it comes from
From crux (Latin) to Cruz
The story of Cruz
Latin crux gave Spanish and Portuguese cruz, and from the Middle Ages onward it attached itself to people: those who lived by a roadside cross, and those who took the name from devotion to the Holy Cross, whose feast falls in mid-September. It became one of the most widespread surnames in the Spanish-speaking world, often in the fuller forms De la Cruz and Santa Cruz, and traveled with Spanish across the Atlantic and to the Philippines. As a given name it grew out of the same devotion, frequently as part of a compound such as Maria de la Cruz. Its move to a standalone first name in English-speaking America is much more recent, and belongs to the broader habit of turning family surnames into given names.
Meaning
cross
From Latin crux, which became cruz in Spanish and Portuguese. The reference is specifically to the Christian cross rather than to crossing or a crossroads.
How the name formed
- cruxLatin
- cruzSpanish, Portuguese
- De la Cruz / Santa Cruzsurname
- Cruzgiven name
Related forms: Cruz · De la Cruz · Creu · Croce · Lacroix · Crux
Pronouncing Cruz
KROOZ
One syllable throughout. English speakers say it with a z at the end; Latin American Spanish uses a softer s sound, and much of Spain uses a th. In American English it sounds identical to the surname Cruise.
Nicknames for Cruz
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
- 20131,250 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #279reached in 2013
- Change vs 2023
- +1.0%1,025 in 2025, from 1,015
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.
Cruz in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Cruz in Portuguese — same name
- De la Cruz in Spanish — related form
- Creu in Catalan — related form
- Croce in Italian — related form
- Lacroix in French — related form
- Crux in Latin — related form
Strongest US states over the last decade: California, Texas, Arizona.
Cruzs among us
people named Cruz are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 1,666 born in 2025 was named Cruz
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Spellings of Cruz
- #331
- Cruz on the 2025 chart
- #281
- counting every spelling
The SSA counts spellings, not names. Cruz went to 1,025 boys in 2025, but Kruz is the same name said out loud. Together the 2 spellings went to 1,192, which makes it the 281st most-given boys’ name of the year — 50 places above the chart.
- Cruz1,025
- Kruz167
About 1 boy in 1,433 born in 2025 was given one of these spellings — against 1 in 1,666 for Cruz itself.
Spellings are grouped by a fixed rule that folds interchangeable English spellings of one sound (ck/k, ph/f, x/ks, a non-initial y for i) and keeps vowels apart, so Sean and Shawn stay separate names. It errs towards splitting: a family here is never larger than the truth. SSA national data, 2025. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Maynard test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Cruz's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Maynard climbed just as high around 1922, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Maynard's path sketches the road Cruz is walking now.
Cruz 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
Where Cruz is headed
Cruz should hold steady through 2030 — the curve is flat, and flat curves are the most predictable kind.
High confidence — fitted on official counts through 2025.
A damped-trend projection of the official birth data — a sketch of momentum, not a promise. Every name's forecast, ranked.
Cruz beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Cruz in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- One syllable and four letters — it is spelled the way it sounds in both English and Spanish, and rarely needs repeating.
- Works unchanged in Spanish, Portuguese and English, so it crosses between a bilingual family's two languages without adjustment.
- A long, unbroken written record as a surname across Spain, Latin America and the Philippines before it was ever a first name.
- Short enough to sit comfortably in front of almost any surname, including long ones.
- It is a very well-known surname, so some people will first read it as a last name and may ask which it is. That settles quickly, but it will come up on forms and rosters.
- In American English it is a homophone of Cruise, which invites the obvious film-star remark. Most bearers hear it a few times and then it fades.
- The meaning is explicitly Christian, and the name grew out of devotion to the cross. Worth knowing if you would rather the meaning stayed neutral — or worth knowing if that is exactly the point.
- In Spain and parts of Latin America, Cruz is used chiefly for women, through Maria de la Cruz. US records treat it as a boy's name, so a family with Spanish-speaking relatives may meet both expectations.
Nobody names a baby alone.
Put Cruz 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 Cruz? Hide it among decoys and let them guess.
What they receive
Someone added a name to your list
Cruz
Masculine · Latin roots · #331 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Cruzs are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 28,000 people named Cruz are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How do you spell Cruz?
- Cruz is the most-used spelling in US records — 1,025 of the 1,192 babies given the name in 2025. The others recorded are Kruz.
- How popular is the name Cruz in 2025?
- Cruz ranks #331 among US boy names in 2025, with 1,025 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Cruz?
- About 1 in every 1,666 US boys born in 2025 was named Cruz — 1,025 in all.
- Will my child share the name Cruz with classmates?
- Cruz will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Cruz
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Josue#330 · Sutton#332 · Finley#333 · Phoenix#329 · Kaden#328 · Orion#334 · Martin#335 · Aidan#326
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Cruz? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Cruz 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.
Or jump into a head-to-head
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