Boys' name · peaked in 1915
Francis name popularity since 1925
222,798 babies born in the US from 1925 to 2025 were named Francis (8.6% girls, 91.4% boys). Half of them were born in 1948 or earlier, so the typical Francis is about 78 years old in 2026. Francis peaked in 1915 as the #29 name for boys, and it ranked #420 in 2025.
Key facts
- US babies since 1925
- 222,798
- Named Francis, 1925–2025
- Peak year
- 1915
- #29 for boys that year
- In 2025
- #420
- for boys in 2025 (769 babies)
- Girls / boys
- 91.4% boys
- 19,060 girls · 203,738 boys
- Most popular in
- Massachusetts
- 4.05× its national share
Peak year is the year Francis 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.
Francis births per year, 1925–2025
The biggest year on this chart was 1925. Measured as a share of all babies, Francis peaked earlier, in 1915.
- Steepest fall: Between 1953 and 1958, Francis's share of baby boys fell by 37%, from 1 in 509 to 1 in 810.
- Fastest rise: Between 2010 and 2015, it became 1.7× more common, from 1 in 5,360 baby boys to 1 in 3,080.
Shaded on the chart. Both compare Francis's share of all US boys five years apart, counting only years with at least 100 babies named Francis.
Decade by decade
Babies named Francis 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 | 2,921 | 28,197 | – |
| 1930s | 3,576 | 41,384 | #53 |
| 1940s | 2,881 | 39,519 | #76 |
| 1950s | 2,114 | 34,766 | #100 |
| 1960s | 1,496 | 19,334 | #164 |
| 1970s | 1,278 | 10,012 | #217 |
| 1980s | 1,426 | 9,412 | #245 |
| 1990s | 1,381 | 7,079 | #352 |
| 2000s | 789 | 4,533 | #526 |
| 2010s | 651 | 5,444 | #481 |
| 2020–25 | 547 | 4,058 | #420 |
Ranks count every name given to at least 5 boys that year, so they can go past 1,000.
Generation fingerprint
36.5% of babies named Francis from 1925 to 2025 were born in the Silent Generation years (1928–1945). The full split by generation:
Where Francis is most popular
The index compares Francis'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 Francis.
| State | Index | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| Massachusetts | 4.05× | 20,997 |
| Vermont | 3.58× | 1,301 |
| Delaware | 3.26× | 1,476 |
| Pennsylvania | 3.03× | 33,519 |
| Rhode Island | 2.84× | 2,190 |
Other spellings
Spellings that sound like Francis and were given to at least 1,000 boys from 1925 to 2025, with the year each one was most popular.
| Spelling | Boys | Peak year |
|---|---|---|
| Francis (this page) | 203,738 | 1915 |
| Francois | 1,715 | 1992 |
Names with a similar story
Of the other 499 names on this site, these six had the share of babies closest in shape to Francis's from 1925 to 2025, however common each one got. Each line is scaled to its own high; the dashed line is Francis.
Names from the same era
Other common names that peaked within two years of Francis (1915).
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