Volney
Masculine
Volney is the pen name of a French philosopher that nineteenth-century Americans liked so much they gave it to their sons. Thomas Jefferson thought enough of the man's great book to translate much of it himself, anonymously.
How old is the name Volney?
Volney was already in use when US birth records began in 1880 — it is at least 145 years old. The typical Volney alive today was born around 1923, making them about 102 years old. About 100 people named Volney are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Volney most popular?
Volney peaked in 1880, reaching #571 nationally. See the whole 1880 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
Origin, sound and short forms
The story of Volney
Constantin-François Chassebœuf, a French traveler and philosopher, wrote as Volney, a name usually said to have been made in tribute to Voltaire and his estate at Ferney. His book The Ruins, or a Survey of the Revolutions of Empires, published in 1791, was a meditation on why civilizations fall, and it was widely read in the young United States, where Volney himself traveled in the 1790s. Thomas Jefferson translated the first twenty chapters, and the translation was completed by Joel Barlow and published without either man's name. American families of the nineteenth century gave Volney to sons, and it was already in use when federal records began.
Meaning
Taken from the pen name of the French writer Volney
Constantin-François Chassebœuf took the name Volney as a writer; the name's own origin is explained in a story about Voltaire.
Pronouncing Volney
VOL-nee
Two syllables with the stress on the first.
Nicknames for Volney
Limited
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
- 191724 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #571reached in 1880
- Change vs 1970
- −16.7%5 in 1986, from 6
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.
Volney in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Volney in French — same name
Volneys among us
people named Volney 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
Volney sits outside the current charts, and that is its own kind of answer: naming cycles can only date the names they carried up. A name this rare has no decade stamped on it — it cannot go out of fashion, because it was never in.
Based on 146 years of naming cycles. How we read them
The trade-off
- A real name with a distinct intellectual history.
- Short and easy to say.
- Almost certain to be the only one.
- People will hear Varney or Volley and may need it spelled.
- It reads as a nineteenth-century name.
- Few people now know the writer it honors.
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Volney
Masculine
Frequently asked
- How many Volneys are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 100 people named Volney are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Volney in 2025?
- Volney is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 boy names.
- Will my child share the name Volney with classmates?
- Volney will almost certainly be the only one in school.
More V names
The most-given names starting with V, all years combined.
Vincent#107 · Victor#209 · Vernon#1382 · Virgil#1409 · Van#970 · Vance#1075 · Vicente#589 · Vaughn#1152
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Volney? See the current top 100.
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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