Benjamin

#10,917 for girls in 2025, 8 births · #11 for boys in 2025, 9,762 births
Given to boys 99.7% of the time

Showing
Show data for
Peak · boys
2016 · 14,686 births
Debut · boys
490 births
In top 100 · boys
105 yrs
of 146 years
Total births · boys
826,830
since 1880

Benjamin over time

boys

Rank among boys' names. Click any year to open it.

#1#10#100rank188019001920194019601980200020201972peak #6, 2016boys
Hover or use arrow keys to read values by year; click or press Enter to open that year.

Gaps mean fewer than 5 babies received the name that year, so the SSA doesn't publish it.

Show data table
Yeargirlsboys
rankbirthsrankbirths
2025#10,9178#119,762
2024#13,4776#119,865
2023#11,1698#1110,224
2022#9,68010#910,912
2021#8,46412#711,895
2020#9,54610#712,264
2019#7,71614#713,044
2018#6,01020#613,488
2017#10,6899#613,858
2016#8,87512#614,686
2015#6,72118#1013,732
2014#6,98717#1213,830
2013#6,46219#1413,515
2012#7,80415#1612,835
2011#5,54324#1913,082
2010#5,77123#2212,439
2009#9,97511#1913,123
2008#6,13022#2512,958
2007#7,39417#2613,282
2006#9,28612#2413,766
2005#6,24519#2513,586
2004#2,50367#2513,832
2003#5,41922#2414,086
2002#4,62126#2713,492
2001#6,32217#2714,339
2000#4,79124#2614,845
1999#4,20127#2913,666
1998#5,79917#3013,061
1997#4,81921#2913,266
1996#4,30624#2913,784
1995#4,34823#3112,720
1994#3,44832#3112,791
1993#4,10025#3212,686
1992#3,68029#3313,455
1991#3,44331#3313,877
1990#2,90039#3314,633
1989#2,19455#2915,733
1988#1,45494#3015,187
1987#1,66273#2814,892
1986#1,47285#3013,793
1985#1,42988#3113,423
1984#1,55073#3013,266
1983#1,27896#3213,285
1982#1,42985#3313,805
1981#1,66369#3214,360
1980#1,49480#3213,622
1979#1,49679#3312,512
1978#1,52373#3411,414
1977#1,66163#2912,106
1976#1,77553#3210,672
1975#1,90647#369,544
1974#2,13338#467,183
1973#2,45530#555,226
1972#3,40418#644,498
1971#2,66527#694,251
1970#3,03022#813,926
1969#3,46116#913,379
1968#2,70822#993,017
1967#2,96318#1192,504
1966#3,55813#1302,377
1965#3,26415#1332,337
1964#3,87912#1312,503
1963#3,33615#1442,348
1962#3,29315#1402,507
1961#4,5469#1462,388
1960#4,4379#1552,249
1959#4,3009#1502,331
1958#3,54312#1502,257
1957#3,30913#1382,489
1956#5,9525#1312,472
1955#3,77810#1322,449
1954#3,9679#1322,452
1953#3,48011#1282,413
1952#4,1238#1222,440
1951#3,48210#1232,345
1950#3,9628#1232,185
1949#4,2357#1352,016
1948#5,2435#1391,963
1947#4,3457#1441,931
1946#3,9947#1461,655
1945#3,3888#1401,562
1944#3,3788#1301,622
1943#2,69512#1301,719
1942#1291,692
1941#3,2528#1241,578
1940#3,8636#1281,446
1939#4,2505#1241,423
1938#3,1818#1251,416
1937#3,8006#1191,422
1936#1231,354
1935#3,4317#1231,409
1934#3,4497#1171,483
1933#2,68810#1181,413
1932#2,49012#1151,539
1931#3,2268#1131,560
1930#3,3458#1151,594
1929#2,01117#1071,695
1928#2,19416#1061,805
1927#3,8757#1011,925
1926#2,56913#981,898
1925#3,6648#932,069
1924#5,0615#892,221
1923#4,9675#862,316
1922#3,6558#822,378
1921#3,4009#822,412
1920#4,3986#832,309
1919#3,00510#792,279
1918#792,431
1917#4,5945#762,386
1916#4,4175#792,186
1915#3,4347#712,241
1914#3,6185#701,823
1913#701,466
1912#671,272
1911#64690
1910#70536
1909#63489
1908#63480
1907#64460
1906#71352
1905#68379
1904#68358
1903#69324
1902#61374
1901#56343
1900#57450
1899#57335
1898#55405
1897#54378
1896#51416
1895#48452
1894#44469
1893#42482
1892#42525
1891#41461
1890#37537
1889#21760
1888#25781
1887#34473
1886#39463
1885#38464
1884#38509
1883#31508
1882#34478
1881#31481
1880#32490
First appearance
1880

In the first year the SSA published name data, Benjamin was already there! It came in at #32, and was given to 490 baby boys.


Quietest stretch: 1893–1908, when fewer than 490 boys a year got the name.

See more about Benjamin
Momentum · boys
Holding steady
  • Held #11 since 2024
  • 4 spots since 2020 (#7#11)
  • 1 spot since 2015 (#10#11)
  • Biggest jump: 20 spots in 1968 (#119#99)
  • Biggest drop: 16 spots in 1890 (#21#37)
Rise & fade · boys
136 yrs to peak
  • Debuted 1880
  • Peaked 2016 at #6 (14,686 births)
  • Not yet halved from its peak
Top of the charts · boys
Top 10 for 8 yrs
  • Top 10: 8 yrs · run 2015–2022
  • Top 100: 105 yrs · run 1968–2025
  • Top 1,000: 146 yrs · run 1880–2025
Share of babies · boys
1 in 125
  • Highest: 1 in 125 boys born in 1981 were named Benjamin (0.80%)
  • Latest: 1 in 175 boys born in 2025 (0.57%)
  • Its best rank, #6 in 2016, was only 1 in 129 (0.77%) — a smaller share of a much bigger birth year
Era · boys
The 1980s
  • 17.1% of all boys named Benjamin (141,366) were born in this decade
  • Comeback: #21 (1889) → #155 (1960) → #6 (2016)
Show by decade
DecadeBirthsBest rankAvg rank
1880s5,407#21 (1889)#32
1890s4,460#37 (1890)#47
1900s4,009#56 (1901)#64
1910s17,310#64 (1911)#73
1920s21,028#82 (1921)#93
1930s14,613#113 (1931)#119
1940s17,184#124 (1941)#135
1950s23,833#122 (1952)#133
1960s25,609#91 (1969)#129
1970s81,332#29 (1977)#48
1980s141,366#28 (1987)#31
1990s133,939#29 (1996)#31
2000s137,309#19 (2009)#25
2010s134,509#6 (2016)#12
2020s64,922#7 (2020)#9

All figures count published births only (names given to at least 5 boys in a year). Registrations before 1937 are incomplete, so early shares and totals run low.

Benjamin in 1972

girls
#3,404
18 births · 1 in 84,514 girls
boys
#64
4,498 births · 1 in 361 boys

Top girls' names in 1972

  1. #1Jennifer63,600
  2. #2Michelle29,285
  3. #3Lisa27,543
  4. #4Kimberly26,282
  5. #5Amy25,873
  6. #6Angela23,561
  7. #7Melissa22,494
  8. #8Stephanie16,890
  9. #9Heather16,320
  10. #10Nicole15,755
  11. #3,404Benjamin18

Top boys' names in 1972

  1. #1Michael71,393
  2. #2Christopher52,172
  3. #3James47,063
  4. #4David46,322
  5. #5John43,158
  6. #6Robert43,013
  7. #7Jason37,423
  8. #8Brian36,306
  9. #9William30,510
  10. #10Matthew22,928
  11. #64Benjamin4,498
More about 1972

girls

1,521,244 girls got a published name in 1972; 1 in 84,514 of them was named Benjamin, which outranked 64.8% of the 9,666 girls' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 17.6% of girls (24.6% in 1880, 7.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Benjamin
  1. #3,276Vincenza19
  2. #3,276Yecenia19
  3. #3,276Yoland19
  4. #3,404Benjamin18
  5. #3,404Adrien18
  6. #3,404Alane18
  7. #3,404Annika18
  8. #3,543Abena17
  9. #3,543Alex17
  10. #3,543Alicea17

Tied with 138 names at #3,404; 3 shown. Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1971
Risers
  1. 5,804Camisha#6,619#815
  2. 3,921Catina#4,123#202
  3. 1,842Cherilyn#2,665#823
  4. 1,789Chasity#2,542#753
  5. 1,694Keena#2,542#848
Fallers
  1. 517Shayla#836#1,353
  2. 428Raina#798#1,226
  3. 280Kendall#742#1,022
  4. 275Alycia#951#1,226
  5. 255Charisse#727#982

Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.

boys

1,621,608 boys got a published name in 1972; 1 in 361 of them was named Benjamin, which outranked 98.9% of the 5,751 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 26.5% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Benjamin
  1. #61Bradley4,839
  2. #62Terry4,770
  3. #63Brandon4,625
  4. #64Benjamin4,498
  5. #65Rodney4,363
  6. #66Samuel4,213
  7. #67Derek4,146
Biggest movers since 1971
Risers
  1. 2,755Demond#3,146#391
  2. 1,286Cade#2,279#993
  3. 905Vidal#1,526#621
  4. 855Damond#1,784#929
  5. 849Kareem#1,254#405
Fallers
  1. 413Rich#914#1,327
  2. 401Monroe#947#1,348
  3. 317Laura#990#1,307
  4. 309Von#976#1,285
  5. 309Westley#998#1,307

Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.

See the top 100 for 1972