Boys' name · peaked in 1929
Herbert name popularity since 1925
152,666 babies born in the US from 1925 to 2025 were named Herbert. Half of them were born in 1942 or earlier, so the typical Herbert is about 84 years old in 2026. Herbert peaked in 1929 as the #25 name for boys, and it was outside the top 1,000 in 2025.
Key facts
- US babies since 1925
- 152,666
- Named Herbert, 1925–2025
- Peak year
- 1929
- #25 for boys that year
- In 2025
- Not top 1,000
- #2,656 for boys in 2025
- Girls / boys
- 99.5% boys
- 839 girls · 151,827 boys
- Most popular in
- Hawaii
- 2.98× its national share
Peak year is the year Herbert 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.
Herbert births per year, 1925–2025
The biggest year by count was 1928. Measured as a share of all babies, Herbert peaked in 1929.
- Steepest fall: Between 1929 and 1934, Herbert's share of baby boys fell by 52%.
Shaded on the chart. This compares Herbert's share of all US boys five years apart, counting only years with at least 100 babies named Herbert.
Decade by decade
Babies named Herbert 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 | 208 | 30,826 | – |
| 1930s | 229 | 37,821 | #58 |
| 1940s | 121 | 28,710 | #94 |
| 1950s | 109 | 24,298 | #129 |
| 1960s | 91 | 13,701 | #183 |
| 1970s | 56 | 7,248 | #287 |
| 1980s | 25 | 4,463 | #410 |
| 1990s | 0 | 2,409 | #725 |
| 2000s | 0 | 1,234 | #1,297 |
| 2010s | 0 | 767 | #1,858 |
| 2020–25 | 0 | 350 | #2,656 |
Ranks count every name given to at least 5 boys that year, so they can go past 1,000.
Generation fingerprint
46.9% of babies named Herbert from 1925 to 2025 were born in the Silent Generation years (1928–1945). The full split by generation:
Where Herbert is most popular
The index compares Herbert'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 Herbert.
| State | Index | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| Hawaii | 2.98× | 1,403 |
| South Carolina | 2.45× | 5,159 |
| Louisiana | 1.93× | 5,203 |
| West Virginia | 1.85× | 2,455 |
| Maine | 1.82× | 1,173 |
Names with a similar story
Of the other 499 names on this site, these six had the share of babies closest in shape to Herbert's from 1925 to 2025, however common each one got. Each line is scaled to its own high; the dashed line is Herbert.
Names from the same era
Other common names that peaked within two years of Herbert (1929).
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