Boys' name · peaked in 1905
Clyde name popularity since 1925
100,267 babies born in the US from 1925 to 2025 were named Clyde (1.3% girls, 98.7% boys). Half of them were born in 1946 or earlier, so the typical Clyde is about 80 years old in 2026. Clyde peaked in 1905 as the #52 name for boys, and it ranked #743 in 2025.
Key facts
- US babies since 1925
- 100,267
- Named Clyde, 1925–2025
- Peak year
- 1905
- #52 for boys that year
- In 2025
- #743
- for boys in 2025 (350 babies)
- Girls / boys
- 98.7% boys
- 1,277 girls · 98,990 boys
- Most popular in
- West Virginia
- 2.86× its national share
Peak year is the year Clyde 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.
Clyde births per year, 1925–2025
The biggest year on this chart was 1925. Measured as a share of all babies, Clyde peaked earlier, in 1905.
- Steepest fall: Between 1961 and 1966, Clyde's share of baby boys fell by 41%, from 1 in 1,570 to 1 in 2,680.
- Fastest rise: Between 2012 and 2017, it became 2.3× more common, from 1 in 12,000 baby boys to 1 in 5,290.
Shaded on the chart. Both compare Clyde's share of all US boys five years apart, counting only years with at least 100 babies named Clyde.
Decade by decade
Babies named Clyde 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 | 386 | 14,000 | – |
| 1930s | 404 | 22,452 | #82 |
| 1940s | 254 | 20,710 | #121 |
| 1950s | 139 | 17,906 | #164 |
| 1960s | 65 | 9,071 | #269 |
| 1970s | 29 | 4,381 | #391 |
| 1980s | 0 | 2,812 | #524 |
| 1990s | 0 | 1,686 | #827 |
| 2000s | 0 | 1,304 | #1,258 |
| 2010s | 0 | 2,493 | #803 |
| 2020–25 | 0 | 2,175 | #743 |
Ranks count every name given to at least 5 boys that year, so they can go past 1,000.
Generation fingerprint
40.6% of babies named Clyde from 1925 to 2025 were born in the Silent Generation years (1928–1945). The full split by generation:
Where Clyde is most popular
The index compares Clyde'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 Clyde.
| State | Index | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| West Virginia | 2.86× | 2,432 |
| Hawaii | 2.68× | 811 |
| Mississippi | 2.50× | 2,934 |
| North Carolina | 2.45× | 6,727 |
| South Carolina | 2.36× | 3,202 |
Names with a similar story
Of the other 1999 names on this site, these six had the share of babies closest in shape to Clyde's from 1925 to 2025, however common each one got. Each line is scaled to its own high; the dashed line is Clyde.
Names from the same era
Other common names that peaked within two years of Clyde (1905).
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