Boys' name · peaked in 1880
Rufus name popularity since 1925
23,569 babies born in the US from 1925 to 2025 were named Rufus. Half of them were born in 1948 or earlier, so the typical Rufus is about 78 years old in 2026. Rufus peaked in 1880 as the #88 name for boys, and it was outside the top 1,000 in 2025.
Key facts
- US babies since 1925
- 23,569
- Named Rufus, 1925–2025
- Peak year
- 1880
- #88 for boys that year
- In 2025
- Not top 1,000
- #4,019 for boys in 2025
- Girls / boys
- 99.6% boys
- 103 girls · 23,466 boys
- Most popular in
- Mississippi
- 5.63× its national share
Peak year is the year Rufus 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.
Rufus births per year, 1925–2025
The biggest year on this chart was 1927. Measured as a share of all babies, Rufus peaked earlier, in 1880.
Decade by decade
Babies named Rufus 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 | 35 | 3,175 | – |
| 1930s | 12 | 4,777 | #250 |
| 1940s | 24 | 4,667 | #296 |
| 1950s | 22 | 4,155 | #358 |
| 1960s | 10 | 2,625 | #505 |
| 1970s | 0 | 1,570 | #680 |
| 1980s | 0 | 1,120 | #797 |
| 1990s | 0 | 558 | #1,948 |
| 2000s | 0 | 328 | #3,074 |
| 2010s | 0 | 340 | #2,799 |
| 2020–25 | 0 | 151 | #4,019 |
Ranks count every name given to at least 5 boys that year, so they can go past 1,000.
Generation fingerprint
37.0% of babies named Rufus from 1925 to 2025 were born in the Silent Generation years (1928–1945). The full split by generation:
Where Rufus is most popular
The index compares Rufus'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 Rufus.
| State | Index | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| Mississippi | 5.63× | 1,401 |
| South Carolina | 5.58× | 1,607 |
| Georgia | 5.18× | 2,942 |
| Alabama | 4.67× | 1,700 |
| North Carolina | 3.85× | 2,241 |
Names with a similar story
Of the other 1999 names on this site, these six had the share of babies closest in shape to Rufus's from 1925 to 2025, however common each one got. Each line is scaled to its own high; the dashed line is Rufus.
Names from the same era
Other common names that peaked within two years of Rufus (1880).
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