Golden
Feminine · “made of gold”
Golden is given to both — 2,292 girls and 2,937 boys since 1880. See Golden as a boy nameSee other names given to both
Golden is the English adjective, and it is one of the oldest words in the language — the metal's name with an ending that means made of. It was in real American use as a name in the nineteenth century.
How old is the name Golden?
Golden first appears in US birth records in 1884 — 141 years ago. The typical Golden alive today was born around 1927, making them about 98 years old. About 900 people named Golden are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Golden most popular?
Golden peaked in 1892, reaching #616 nationally. Today it ranks #3389, 2,773 places below that high. See the whole 1892 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From gylden to Golden
The story of Golden
Gold names have a long American history — Golden, Goldie and Goldman all appear in the nineteenth-century records, some as English word-names and some as translations of Yiddish surnames. Golden was used for girls and boys, and there are Goldens in the American South from the eighteenth century onward. Its modern return belongs with the other color and quality names now in the records.
Meaning
made of gold; gold-colored
From Old English gylden, built on gold, which is itself among the oldest recoverable words in the Germanic languages and related to words for yellow across the whole family.
How the name formed
- gylden
- golden
Related forms: Golden · Golde
Pronouncing Golden
GOHL-den
Two syllables, first stressed. There is no variation in English.
Nicknames for Golden
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
- 1884
- Most girls named
- 192250 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #616reached in 1892
- Change vs 2022
- +7.1%45 in 2025, from 42
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.
Golden in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Golden in German — related form
- Golde in Yiddish — related form
Strongest US states over the last decade: California, Texas, Florida.
Goldens among us
people named Golden are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 35,717 born in 2025 was named Golden
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
Golden 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 Golden is headed
Golden looks set to keep climbing gently, with roughly 18% more babies a year by 2030 if the current curve holds.
Medium 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.
Golden beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Golden in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- An ordinary English word, so nobody has to be taught to say or spell it.
- Goldie is a warm short form with genuine American history.
- Real nineteenth-century use, so it is a revival rather than an invention.
- It describes a quality the child has not chosen and will be remarked on.
- It is used for both sexes, so forms may guess wrong.
- Golden retriever and golden child are both common phrases and both will be mentioned.
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What they receive
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Golden
Feminine · #3389 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Goldens 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 Golden are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Golden in 2025?
- Golden ranks #3389 among US girl names in 2025, with 45 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Golden?
- About 1 in every 35,717 US girls born in 2025 was named Golden — 45 in all.
- Will my child share the name Golden with classmates?
- Golden will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Golden
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Katheryn#3389 · Posey#3389 · Ronni#3389 · Gittel#3389 · Betsabe#3389 · Germany#3389 · Jaslene#3389 · Lovina#3389
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Golden? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Golden and another name?
See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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