Harry
Masculine · “ruler of the household”
Harry is overwhelmingly a boys’ name — 423,866 boys against 2,017 girls since 1880. See Harry as a girl name
For several centuries English had a name for the devil and it was this one. Old Harry appears in writing from the sixteenth century onward as a familiar, half-joking way of referring to Satan — the same impulse that produced the Old Gentleman and the Old Lad, naming the thing you would rather not name directly.
How old is the name Harry?
Harry was already in use when US birth records began in 1880 — it is at least 145 years old. The typical Harry alive today was born around 1927, making them about 98 years old. About 120,000 people named Harry are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Harry most popular?
Harry peaked in 1889, reaching #8 nationally. Today it ranks #775, 767 places below that high. See the whole 1889 chart.
Where it comes from
From Henry to Harry
The story of Harry
One president carried it as his legal name and had a middle initial that stood for nothing at all. His parents could not decide which grandfather to honor — the names began with the same letter — so they gave him the letter alone and let both sides believe it was theirs. He was inconsistent about the punctuation for the rest of his life, sometimes writing a full stop after it and sometimes not, which has kept style guides arguing ever since. It is a small and rather charming instance of a family solving a diplomatic problem by refusing to solve it.
Meaning
ruler of the household
The Germanic elements behind the fuller name mean home and ruler. This form is not a shortening in the ordinary sense; it is the older English spoken version of the same name, which the written form eventually separated from.
How the name formed
- Henry
- Harry
Pronouncing Harry
HARR-ee
Two syllables with the stress at the front and a short first vowel. Nothing about the spelling causes any hesitation.
Nicknames for Harry
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
- 19189,896 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #8reached in 1889
- Change vs 2022
- −13.6%329 in 2025, from 381
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.
Harry in other languages
Strongest US states over the last decade: California, New York, Texas. International figures from Office for National Statistics, National Records of Scotland. Sources
Harrys among us
people named Harry are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 5,192 born in 2025 was named Harry
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
Harry has held the top-100 across 8 different decades — it has never depended on fashion, and names like that read the same at any age.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Where Harry is headed
Harry should hold steady through 2030 — the curve is flat, and flat curves are the most predictable kind.
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.
Harry beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Harry in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- It has been in continuous English use for the better part of a thousand years.
- It reads as warm and unpretentious in a way the formal version does not.
- The spelling and the sound agree completely.
- It reads as a short form to some ears even when it is the legal name.
- Its peak was very early, which gives the name a period feel for some.
- The record holds girls as well, and the girl is much the smaller side.
Nobody names a baby alone.
Put Harry to the vote.
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What they receive
Someone added a name to your list
Harry
Masculine · #775 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Harrys are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 120,000 people named Harry are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Harry in 2025?
- Harry ranks #775 among US boy names in 2025, with 329 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Harry?
- About 1 in every 5,192 US boys born in 2025 was named Harry — 329 in all.
- Will my child share the name Harry with classmates?
- Harry will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Harry
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Riggs#775 · Alvaro#777 · Truce#773 · Asaiah#773 · Corey#778 · Dutton#778 · Zamir#778 · Blaze#781
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Harry? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Harry 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; international figures from national statistics agencies. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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