Travis
Masculine · “from a crossing or a toll”
Travis is overwhelmingly a boys’ name — 308,571 boys against 2,116 girls since 1880. See Travis as a girl name
This name is Texan for a reason. It belongs to the officer who commanded the garrison at the Alamo and died there at twenty-six, and the record shows it holding its strongest ground in Texas ever since — a surname made into a first name by a single siege that lasted under a fortnight.
How old is the name Travis?
Travis was already in use when US birth records began in 1880 — it is at least 145 years old. The typical Travis alive today was born around 1987, making them about 38 years old. About 283,000 people named Travis are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Travis most popular?
Travis peaked in 1979, reaching #36 nationally. Today it ranks #434, 398 places below that high. See the whole 1979 chart.
Where it comes from
From traverse to Travis
The story of Travis
The most repeated story about him should be treated carefully. Every Texan schoolchild learns that he drew a line in the sand with his sword and asked the men who would stay to step across it. The account first appears in print decades after the siege, attributed to the recollection of one man who is supposed to have declined to cross and left, and no contemporary source mentions it at all. Historians have argued about it for a century without settling it. What is not in doubt is the letter he sent out three days into the siege, addressed to the people of Texas and all Americans in the world, which ends with three words that are carved into the building's floor and are read aloud in schools every February.
Meaning
from a crossing or a toll
An occupational surname from Norman French, describing a man stationed at a river crossing or a barrier. The word behind it is the same one that gives English traverse.
How the name formed
- traverse
- Travers
- Travis
Pronouncing Travis
TRAV-iss
Two syllables with the stress at the front. The spelling gives no trouble and the name is never mispronounced.
Nicknames for Travis
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
- 199011,462 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #36reached in 1979
- Change vs 2022
- −13.8%732 in 2025, from 849
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.
Travis in other languages
Strongest US states over the last decade: Texas, California, Florida.
Traviss among us
people named Travis are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 2,333 born in 2025 was named Travis
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Norman test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Travis's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Norman climbed just as high around 1931, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Norman's path sketches the road Travis is walking now.
Travis 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 Travis is headed
Travis 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.
Travis beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Travis in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- The spelling and the sound agree completely with nothing to explain.
- Trav is a short form that sounds entirely current.
- It carries a specific and identifiable history rather than a vague one.
- Its peak generation is recent enough to date the name to a decade.
- The historical association is regional and very strong in one state.
- The record holds girls as well, and the girl is much the smaller side.
Nobody names a baby alone.
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What they receive
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Travis
Masculine · #434 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Traviss are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 283,000 people named Travis are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Travis in 2025?
- Travis ranks #434 among US boy names in 2025, with 732 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Travis?
- About 1 in every 2,333 US boys born in 2025 was named Travis — 732 in all.
- Will my child share the name Travis with classmates?
- Travis will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Travis
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Frederick#435 · Lewis#433 · Moshe#435 · Raiden#432 · Malik#437 · Mario#438 · Wilder#429 · Jasai#439
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Travis? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Travis and another name?
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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
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