Lou

#2,645 for girls in 2025, 65 births · #1,919 for boys in 2025, 81 births
Given to girls 89.3% of the time

Showing
Show data for
Peak · girls
#122
1880 · 131 births
Debut · girls
1880
131 births
In top 100 · girls
never
of 146 years
Total births · girls
34,109
since 1880

Lou over time

girlsboys

Rank within each sex, plotted together. Click any year to open it.

#1#10#100#1,000#10,000rank188019001920194019601980200020201941peak #122, 1880peak #442, 1881girlsboys
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#2,64565#1,91981
2024#2,50871#2,12070
2023#2,55569#2,03274
2022#2,75662#2,00076
2021#3,03754#2,27761
2020#3,49843#2,32358
2019#3,71840#2,80844
2018#3,78939#3,44632
2017#4,57630#3,12337
2016#4,15735#2,68945
2015#4,72529#3,02238
2014#5,79722#3,78727
2013#7,74815#4,06424
2012#6,87218#5,03518
2011#7,43616#3,79227
2010#9,79011#5,47816
2009#17,2945#4,42922
2008#15,4056#6,39313
2007#15,4916#6,26213
2006#11,4179#4,52020
2005#7,89114#4,19821
2004#9,89210#5,00716
2003#9,67110#6,71510
2002#11,1088#5,39513
2001#11,0208#3,97420
2000#9,8749#5,92011
1999#12,6886#7,1398
1998#10,1228#5,46611
1997#10,8367#4,45114
1996—#4,39614
1995—#4,50813
1994#10,5697#3,32620
1993#8,05210#4,22714
1992#8,7349#3,33819
1991#11,5096#2,75324
1990#6,86712#2,69524
1989#6,16013#3,20518
1988#6,66611#4,45010
1987#5,61313#3,07216
1986#5,45913#3,88211
1985#5,67812#2,59819
1984#3,99019#2,52919
1983#4,10918#3,23013
1982#3,01729#2,26922
1981#2,92830#2,77916
1980#3,99219#2,21323
1979#2,34340#2,04825
1978#2,35038#1,96525
1977#2,16243#2,55617
1976#1,88348#2,24520
1975#1,85449#2,13421
1974#1,53263#2,19919
1973#1,17592#1,61229
1972#1,105101#1,77125
1971#951134#1,37838
1970#848159#1,31440
1969#801165#1,49229
1968#767169#1,36632
1967#753171#1,41129
1966#724186#1,19439
1965#657225#1,33533
1964#598277#1,09648
1963#496382#1,25538
1962#487396#1,12147
1961#447473#1,05954
1960#388593#94464
1959#358706#1,01957
1958#314851#92867
1957#309884#88972
1956#2581,066#1,01954
1955#2321,225#1,07549
1954#2041,495#1,03952
1953#2081,434#1,24536
1952#345569#1,16640
1951#391440#94355
1950#395414#1,28931
1949#374441#1,20535
1948#379439#1,14539
1947#355510#93856
1946#343478#98047
1945#341399#92748
1944#314463#1,07038
1943#330456#1,08839
1942#293536#97047
1941#286506#1,04039
1940#281494#1,03139
1939#277502#90447
1938#274532#1,19930
1937#269539#1,31326
1936#271506#1,29626
1935#269522#1,24729
1934#263559#1,38624
1933#265534#1,05138
1932#270540#98045
1931#290463#1,06540
1930#306468#1,36828
1929#308474#1,33928
1928#320425#1,04144
1927#303489#1,17837
1926#323417#1,35329
1925#337395#1,09141
1924#348381#1,18737
1923#356343#1,21335
1922#347350#1,12040
1921#377320#1,41228
1920#356336#1,25233
1919#361313#1,62421
1918#335371#1,25631
1917#338338#96445
1916#351308#1,02839
1915#353285#1,15931
1914#348227#88438
1913#342199#1,25617
1912#315212#97022
1911#316153#1,1909
1910#317144#70718
1909#307140—
1908#292147#68515
1907#312124#77812
1906#334100—
1905#276143#66613
1904#297117#9667
1903#266133#69611
1902#285121#1,0136
1901#30496#8587
1900#274140#69913
1899#251125#54813
1898#236156#70110
1897#267114#58413
1896#245130#72210
1895#252125#7389
1894#249118#59412
1893#222137#65010
1892#222137#7489
1891#231109#7008
1890#210132#6679
1889#210120#44617
1888#172169#64810
1887#167147#58310
1886#178129#6479
1885#158135#52113
1884#145146#61310
1883#136142#55611
1882#137131#61110
1881#137114#44215
1880#122131#48214
First appearance
1880

In the first year the SSA published name data, Lou was already there! It came in at #122, and was given to 131 baby girls.

Quietest stretch: 1995–1996, when fewer than 5 girls a year got the name.

See more about Lou
Momentum · girls
Rising
  • 137 spots since 2024 (#2,508 → #2,645)
  • 853 spots since 2020 (#3,498 → #2,645)
  • 2,080 spots since 2015 (#4,725 → #2,645)
  • Biggest jump: 137 spots in 1953 (#345 → #208)
  • Biggest drop: 154 spots in 1972 (#951 → #1,105)
Rise & fade · girls
Peaked on debut
  • Debuted 1880
  • Peaked 1880 at #122 (131 births)
  • Births halved by 1974, 94 yrs later
Top of the charts · girls
Top 1,000 for 92 yrs
  • Top 10: never
  • Top 100: never
  • Top 1,000: 92 yrs · run 1880–1971
Share of babies · girls
1 in 695
  • Highest: 1 in 695 girls born in 1880 were named Lou (0.14%)
  • Latest: 1 in 24,727 girls born in 2025 (0.00%)
Era · girls
The 1950s
  • 26.6% of all girls named Lou (9,084) were born in this decade
Girls or boys?
Flipped in 2025
  • Mostly girls until 2024, mostly boys since
all girlsall boys
Show by decade
DecadeBirthsBest rankAvg rank
1880s1,364#122 (1880)#156
1890s1,283#210 (1890)#239
1900s1,261#266 (1903)#295
1910s2,550#315 (1912)#338
1920s3,930#303 (1927)#338
1930s5,165#263 (1934)#275
1940s4,722#281 (1940)#330
1950s9,084#204 (1954)#301
1960s3,037#388 (1960)#612
1970s767#848 (1970)#1,620
1980s177#2,928 (1981)#4,761
1990s65#6,867 (1990)#9,922
2000s85#7,891 (2005)#11,906
2010s255#3,718 (2019)#5,861
2020s364#2,508 (2024)#2,833

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

Lou in 1941

girls
#286
506 births · 1 in 2,388 girls
boys
#1,040
39 births · 1 in 31,495 boys

Top girls' names in 1941

  1. #1Mary58,048
  2. #2Barbara39,543
  3. #3Patricia36,905
  4. #4Carol24,187
  5. #5Linda23,721
  6. #6Judith23,320
  7. #7Betty20,905
  8. #8Nancy20,885
  9. #9Sandra19,500
  10. #10Shirley16,954
  11. #286Lou506

Top boys' names in 1941

  1. #1James66,751
  2. #2Robert64,247
  3. #3John57,520
  4. #4William47,798
  5. #5Richard39,112
  6. #6Charles32,742
  7. #7David30,553
  8. #8Thomas26,641
  9. #9Ronald24,407
  10. #10Donald22,641
  11. #1,040Lou39
More about 1941

girls

1,208,119 girls got a published name in 1941; 1 in 2,388 of them was named Lou, which outranked 94.4% of the 5,085 girls' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 23.5% of girls (24.6% in 1880, 7.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Lou
  1. #283Lee520
  2. #284Sharron517
  3. #285Mabel507
  4. #286Lou506
  5. #286Sandy506
  6. #288Leslie505
  7. #289Sallie500
  8. #290Sadie499

Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1940
Risers
  1. ↑ 2,130Jerilyn#2,737 → #607
  2. ↑ 1,258Trina#2,109 → #851
  3. ↑ 372Karan#1,347 → #975
  4. ↑ 371Kristine#1,313 → #942
  5. ↑ 356Sherri#1,186 → #830
Fallers
  1. ↓ 447Kenneth#971 → #1,418
  2. ↓ 421Janna#997 → #1,418
  3. ↓ 366Beatriz#989 → #1,355
  4. ↓ 338Merna#997 → #1,335
  5. ↓ 337Eldora#957 → #1,294

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

boys

1,228,318 boys got a published name in 1941; 1 in 31,495 of them was named Lou, which outranked 74.0% of the 4,002 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 33.6% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Lou
  1. #1,019Randle40
  2. #1,019Rondal40
  3. #1,019Welton40
  4. #1,040Lou39
  5. #1,040Alice39
  6. #1,040Isadore39
  7. #1,040Lenwood39
  8. #1,051Abner38
  9. #1,051Chauncey38
  10. #1,051Cleve38

Tied with 10 names at #1,040; 3 shown. Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1940
Risers
  1. ↑ 586Gay#1,573 → #987
  2. ↑ 375Issac#1,251 → #876
  3. ↑ 363Otho#1,334 → #971
  4. ↑ 338Lawrance#1,208 → #870
  5. ↑ 313Ford#1,251 → #938
Fallers
  1. ↓ 508Wilkie#792 → #1,300
  2. ↓ 452Arlis#994 → #1,446
  3. ↓ 394Ruby#939 → #1,333
  4. ↓ 359Gonzalo#850 → #1,209
  5. ↓ 325Lenord#929 → #1,254

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

See the top 100 for 1941 →