Boys' name · peaked in 2015
Gunnar name popularity since 1925
17,946 babies born in the US from 1925 to 2025 were named Gunnar. Half of them were born in 2011 or earlier, so the typical Gunnar is about 15 years old in 2026. Gunnar peaked in 2015 as the #388 name for boys, and it ranked #612 in 2025.
Key facts
- US babies since 1925
- 17,946
- Named Gunnar, 1925–2025
- In 2025
- #612
- for boys in 2025 (462 babies)
- Girls / boys
- 99.9% boys
- 22 girls · 17,924 boys
- Most popular in
- Washington
- 3.11× its national share
Peak year is the year Gunnar 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.
Gunnar births per year, 1925–2025
2015 was the biggest year for Gunnar both by count and as a share of all babies.
- Fastest rise: Between 1993 and 1998, Gunnar became 2.2× more common, from 1 in 10,400 baby boys to 1 in 4,640.
Shaded on the chart. This compares Gunnar's share of all US boys five years apart, counting only years with at least 100 babies named Gunnar.
Decade by decade
Babies named Gunnar 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 | 82 | – |
| 1930s | 0 | 109 | #2,609 |
| 1940s | 0 | 102 | #2,467 |
| 1950s | 0 | 182 | #1,929 |
| 1960s | 0 | 217 | #1,885 |
| 1970s | 0 | 234 | #1,807 |
| 1980s | 0 | 294 | #2,321 |
| 1990s | 0 | 2,766 | #574 |
| 2000s | 6 | 4,268 | #539 |
| 2010s | 16 | 6,681 | #388 |
| 2020–25 | 0 | 2,989 | #612 |
Ranks count every name given to at least 5 boys that year, so they can go past 1,000.
Generation fingerprint
45.2% of babies named Gunnar from 1925 to 2025 were born in the Gen Alpha years (2013–2025). The full split by generation:
Where Gunnar is most popular
The index compares Gunnar'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 Gunnar.
| State | Index | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| Washington | 3.11× | 812 |
| Minnesota | 2.44× | 693 |
| Colorado | 2.12× | 407 |
| Arizona | 1.88× | 380 |
| Wisconsin | 1.52× | 467 |
Other spellings
Spellings that sound like Gunnar 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Gunnar (this page) | 17,924 | 2015 |
| Gunner | 23,486 | 2015 |
Names with a similar story
Of the other 1999 names on this site, these six had the share of babies closest in shape to Gunnar's from 1925 to 2025, however common each one got. Each line is scaled to its own high; the dashed line is Gunnar.
Names from the same era
Other common names that peaked within two years of Gunnar (2015).
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