Sim
Masculine · “he has heard”
Sim is Simon at its shortest, and Simon is a Hebrew name that the New Testament renames — the fisherman is Simon until Jesus calls him Peter, and the gospels keep both.
How old is the name Sim?
Sim was already in use when US birth records began in 1880 — it is at least 145 years old. The typical Sim alive today was born around 1928, making them about 97 years old. About 500 people named Sim are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Sim most popular?
Sim peaked in 1882, reaching #298 nationally. See the whole 1882 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From Shim'on to Sim
The story of Sim
Simon was among the commonest names in first-century Judea and is carried by several New Testament figures, including the apostle who becomes Peter. It was in ordinary English use from the Middle Ages, and Scots in particular clipped it to Sim, producing the surnames Sim, Simms and Simpson. Nineteenth-century American families registered Sim as a legal name in its own right, peaking around 1885.
Meaning
he has heard
Through Simon, from the Hebrew Shim'on, from shama, 'to hear' — 'he has heard' or 'the one who listens'. Genesis explains the tribal ancestor's name that way. Greek assimilated it to the existing Greek name Simon, which is why the spelling looks Greek.
How the name formed
- Shim'on
- Simon
- Sim
Related forms: Shimon · Simón · Simone · Sim
Pronouncing Sim
SIM
One syllable. Said identically in every English accent.
Nicknames for Sim
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
- 191940 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #298reached in 1882
- Change vs 2006
- 0.0%5 in 2010, from 5
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.
Sim in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Shimon in Hebrew — related form
- Simón in Spanish — related form
- Simone in Italian — related form
- Sim in Scottish — same name
Sims among us
people named Sim are estimated to be alive in the US today
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
Questions parents actually ask
Fashion outlook
Sim has already lived its whole cycle: it rose, had its era, and has stepped off the charts. The fashion question is behind it — what lies ahead is the waiting room where revivals begin, once a name's first generation has grown distant enough for it to sound fresh again.
Based on 146 years of naming cycles. How we read them
The trade-off
- Simon stands behind it with three thousand years of documented use.
- The Scottish clipping tradition gives it a real history rather than being an ad hoc shortening.
- Three letters, one syllable, and never misheard.
- Given outright it stays informal, with nothing longer on the certificate.
- It is strongly period-coded to the nineteenth century in American records.
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What they receive
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Sim
Masculine
Frequently asked
- How many Sims are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 500 people named Sim are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Sim in 2025?
- Sim is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 boy names.
- Will my child share the name Sim with classmates?
- Sim will almost certainly be the only one in school.
More S names
The most-given names starting with S, all years combined.
Steven#271 · Stephen#383 · Samuel#18 · Scott#534 · Sean#489 · Shawn#681 · Stanley#863 · Steve#1609
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Sim? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Sim and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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