Boys' name · peaked in 1936
Bobby name popularity since 1925
321,624 babies born in the US from 1925 to 2025 were named Bobby (2.8% girls, 97.2% boys). Half of them were born in 1953 or earlier, so the typical Bobby is about 73 years old in 2026. Bobby peaked in 1936 as the #24 name for boys, and it was outside the top 1,000 in 2025.
Key facts
- US babies since 1925
- 321,624
- Named Bobby, 1925–2025
- In 2025
- Not top 1,000
- #1,097 for boys in 2025
- Girls / boys
- 97.2% boys
- 9,052 girls · 312,572 boys
- Most popular in
- Arkansas
- 4.75× its national share
Peak year is the year Bobby 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.
Bobby births per year, 1925–2025
The biggest year by count was 1937. Measured as a share of all babies, Bobby peaked in 1936.
- Fastest rise: Between 1925 and 1930, Bobby became 4.9× more common.
- Steepest fall: Between 1939 and 1944, its share of baby boys fell by 38%, from 1 in 157 to 1 in 252.
Shaded on the chart. Both compare Bobby's share of all US boys five years apart, counting only years with at least 100 babies named Bobby.
Decade by decade
Babies named Bobby 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 | 835 | 11,863 | – |
| 1930s | 2,244 | 69,419 | #24 |
| 1940s | 1,555 | 58,890 | #53 |
| 1950s | 1,218 | 53,281 | #75 |
| 1960s | 1,021 | 46,390 | #80 |
| 1970s | 1,161 | 29,077 | #93 |
| 1980s | 680 | 22,025 | #135 |
| 1990s | 210 | 11,384 | #269 |
| 2000s | 59 | 5,708 | #490 |
| 2010s | 31 | 3,281 | #740 |
| 2020–25 | 38 | 1,254 | #1,097 |
Ranks count every name given to at least 5 boys that year, so they can go past 1,000.
Generation fingerprint
36.1% of babies named Bobby from 1925 to 2025 were born in the Silent Generation years (1928–1945). The full split by generation:
Where Bobby is most popular
The index compares Bobby'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 Bobby.
| State | Index | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| Arkansas | 4.75× | 15,618 |
| Mississippi | 3.74× | 14,486 |
| Oklahoma | 3.60× | 15,002 |
| Tennessee | 3.34× | 22,511 |
| Alabama | 3.32× | 18,795 |
Names with a similar story
Of the other 499 names on this site, these six had the share of babies closest in shape to Bobby's from 1925 to 2025, however common each one got. Each line is scaled to its own high; the dashed line is Bobby.
Names from the same era
Other common names that peaked within two years of Bobby (1936).
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