Boys' name · peaked in 1962
Barry name popularity since 1925
181,446 babies born in the US from 1925 to 2025 were named Barry. Half of them were born in 1958 or earlier, so the typical Barry is about 68 years old in 2026. Barry peaked in 1962 as the #61 name for boys, and it was outside the top 1,000 in 2025.
Key facts
- US babies since 1925
- 181,446
- Named Barry, 1925–2025
- In 2025
- Not top 1,000
- #1,520 for boys in 2025
- Girls / boys
- 99.6% boys
- 766 girls · 180,680 boys
- Most popular in
- Pennsylvania
- 2.22× its national share
Peak year is the year Barry made up the largest share of US boys, in records going back to 1880. Typical age is based on births from 1925 on, not on who is living today.
Barry births per year, 1925–2025
1962 was the biggest year for Barry both by count and as a share of all babies.
- Fastest rise: Between 1928 and 1933, Barry became 3.9× more common.
- Steepest fall: Between 1990 and 1995, its share of baby boys fell by 45%, from 1 in 2,960 to 1 in 5,390.
Shaded on the chart. Both compare Barry's share of all US boys five years apart, counting only years with at least 100 babies named Barry.
Decade by decade
Babies named Barry in each decade, and its rank among boys' names in the middle year of the decade (1935, 1945 … 2025).
| Decade | Girls | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1925–29 | 0 | 533 | – |
| 1930s | 27 | 6,644 | #183 |
| 1940s | 140 | 36,192 | #84 |
| 1950s | 196 | 54,812 | #70 |
| 1960s | 205 | 47,221 | #86 |
| 1970s | 105 | 17,246 | #164 |
| 1980s | 83 | 9,922 | #240 |
| 1990s | 10 | 4,224 | #540 |
| 2000s | 0 | 1,831 | #1,053 |
| 2010s | 0 | 1,326 | #1,267 |
| 2020–25 | 0 | 729 | #1,520 |
Ranks count every name given to at least 5 boys that year, so they can go past 1,000.
Generation fingerprint
57.5% of babies named Barry from 1925 to 2025 were born in the Baby Boom years (1946–1964). The full split by generation:
Where Barry is most popular
The index compares Barry's share of babies in each state with its share nationwide, 1925–2025 (1.50× = 50% more common). States with at least 300 babies named Barry.
| State | Index | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| Pennsylvania | 2.22× | 20,276 |
| Kentucky | 1.64× | 4,944 |
| Maine | 1.52× | 1,168 |
| Virginia | 1.49× | 6,046 |
| Alabama | 1.46× | 4,629 |
Names with a similar story
Of the other 499 names on this site, these six had the share of babies closest in shape to Barry's from 1925 to 2025, however common each one got. Each line is scaled to its own high; the dashed line is Barry.
Names from the same era
Other common names that peaked within two years of Barry (1962).
Source: U.S. Social Security Administration national and state baby-name data, which covers names given to at least 5 babies of one sex in a year. About the data