Boys' name · peaked in 1880
William name popularity since 1925
3,424,247 babies born in the US from 1925 to 2025 were named William. Half of them were born in 1957 or earlier, so the typical William is about 69 years old in 2026. William peaked in 1880 as the #2 name for boys, and it ranked #9 in 2025.
Key facts
- US babies since 1925
- 3,424,247
- Named William, 1925–2025
- Peak year
- 1880
- #2 for boys that year
- In 2025
- #9
- for boys in 2025 (10,545 babies)
- Girls / boys
- 99.6% boys
- 12,774 girls · 3,411,473 boys
- Most popular in
- Delaware
- 1.70× its national share
Peak year is the year William 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.
William births per year, 1925–2025
The biggest year on this chart was 1947. Measured as a share of all babies, William peaked earlier, in 1880.
Decade by decade
Babies named William 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 | 1,598 | 253,641 | – |
| 1930s | 1,903 | 416,730 | #4 |
| 1940s | 1,507 | 556,478 | #4 |
| 1950s | 1,389 | 591,228 | #6 |
| 1960s | 1,794 | 421,433 | #6 |
| 1970s | 1,858 | 283,401 | #10 |
| 1980s | 1,684 | 248,277 | #16 |
| 1990s | 439 | 217,822 | #20 |
| 2000s | 354 | 194,415 | #11 |
| 2010s | 184 | 159,981 | #5 |
| 2020–25 | 64 | 68,067 | #9 |
Ranks count every name given to at least 5 boys that year, so they can go past 1,000.
Generation fingerprint
31.4% of babies named William from 1925 to 2025 were born in the Baby Boom years (1946–1964). The full split by generation:
Where William is most popular
The index compares William'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 William.
| State | Index | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| Delaware | 1.70× | 12,236 |
| District of Columbia | 1.66× | 26,457 |
| West Virginia | 1.53× | 46,451 |
| Kentucky | 1.52× | 88,316 |
| South Carolina | 1.48× | 71,838 |
Other spellings
Spellings that sound like William 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 |
|---|---|---|
| William (this page) | 3,411,473 | 1880 |
| Willam | 2,753 | 1893 |
| Wiliam | 1,157 | 1881 |
Names with a similar story
Of the other 499 names on this site, these six had the share of babies closest in shape to William's from 1925 to 2025, however common each one got. Each line is scaled to its own high; the dashed line is William.
Names from the same era
Other common names that peaked within two years of William (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