Peter
Masculine · “a rock”
Peter is overwhelmingly a boys’ name — 589,588 boys against 1,943 girls since 1880. See Peter as a girl name
Parsley and petroleum are carrying the same Greek word as this name. Petroleum is rock oil; parsley is rock celery, from a plant that grows in stony ground; and the name is simply rock, given as a nickname to a fisherman and used ever since as though it were what he was christened.
How old is the name Peter?
Peter was already in use when US birth records began in 1880 — it is at least 145 years old. The typical Peter alive today was born around 1960, making them about 65 years old. About 399,000 people named Peter are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Peter most popular?
Peter peaked in 1880, reaching #31 nationally. Today it ranks #187, 156 places below that high. See the whole 1880 chart.
Where it comes from
From Kephas to Peter
The story of Peter
A seabird may be named after him. Storm petrels are small ocean birds that feed by fluttering just above the surface with their feet pattering on the water, so that they appear to be walking on it, and the usual explanation of the name is that sailors called them little Peters after the gospel account. The derivation is not certain — it appears comparatively late and there are competing suggestions — but it has been repeated since the seventeenth century and no better explanation has been offered. The birds nest on remote islands and spend the rest of their lives out of sight of land.
Meaning
a rock
Greek, and the sense is not in dispute. The name is a translation of an Aramaic nickname rather than a borrowing of it, which is unusual: most names cross languages by sound rather than by meaning.
Cultural footprint
Peter Jackson (b. 1961) — Directed The Lord of the Rings
Peter O'Toole (b. 1932) — Lawrence of Arabia himself
Peter Higgs (b. 1929) — The physicist behind the Higgs boson
Source: Wikidata — the one source on this page that is not an official agency.
How the name formed
- Kephas
- Petros
- Peter
Related forms: Pedro · Pietro · Pierre · Pyotr
Pronouncing Peter
PEE-tur
Two syllables with the stress at the front. The spelling is entirely unambiguous and the name is never mispronounced in English.
Nicknames for Peter
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
- 195711,603 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #31reached in 1880
- Change vs 2022
- +10.2%1,954 in 2025, from 1,773
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.
Peter in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Pedro in Spanish — same name
- Pietro in Italian — same name
- Pierre in French — same name
- Pyotr in Russian — same name
Strongest US states over the last decade: California, Texas, New York.
Peters among us
people named Peter are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 874 born in 2025 was named Peter
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
Peter has held the top-100 across 12 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 Peter is headed
Peter 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.
Peter beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Peter in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- It is recognized in every European language with minimal change.
- The meaning is concrete, solid and easy to explain to a child.
- It has been in continuous use for as long as records exist.
- Its peak was very early and the name carries some of that age.
- Pete is common enough that the full form may rarely be used.
- The record holds girls as well, and the girl is much the smaller side.
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What they receive
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Peter
Masculine · #187 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Peters are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 399,000 people named Peter are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Peter in 2025?
- Peter ranks #187 among US boy names in 2025, with 1,954 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Peter?
- About 1 in every 874 US boys born in 2025 was named Peter — 1,954 in all.
- Will my child share the name Peter with classmates?
- Peter will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Peter
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Aziel#186 · Rhett#188 · Amari#185 · Maxwell#189 · Callan#190 · Jesse#184 · Alan#191 · Cole#182
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Peter? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Peter and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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