Walter

Last seen for girls in 1995 at #11,783 · #251 for boys in 2025, 1,381 births
Given to boys 99.4% of the time

Showing
Show data for
Peak · boys
1914 · 8,962 births
Debut · boys
1,755 births
In top 100 · boys
93 yrs
of 146 years
Total births · boys
631,172
since 1880

Walter over time

boys

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

#1#10#100rank188019001920194019601980200020201937peak #10, 1914boys
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#2511,381
2024#2711,269
2023#2671,276
2022#2681,278
2021#2711,281
2020#2721,240
2019#2781,282
2018#2711,313
2017#2651,366
2016#3021,172
2015#3091,158
2014#337987
2013#342939
2012#375805
2011#374801
2010#372784
2009#383789
2008#393764
2007#379810
2006#356850
2005#374770
2004#364767
2003#354775
2002#330833
2001#335826
2000#308949
1999#310918
1998#311896
1997#2731,027
1996#2721,035
1995#11,7836#2651,062
1994#10,5697#2501,152
1993#9,5598#2201,356
1992#8,06510#2181,421
1991#1991,539
1990#10,1937#1911,614
1989#10,8476#1841,612
1988#3,89323#1751,610
1987#4,12220#1741,574
1986#6,61210#1561,715
1985#3,98320#1631,690
1984#6,8109#1611,689
1983#6,21210#1541,767
1982#4,02519#1471,912
1981#4,34417#1381,990
1980#4,51716#1372,009
1979#3,54122#1282,123
1978#3,38822#1311,991
1977#4,94213#1232,185
1976#3,40720#1272,101
1975#2,96924#1122,355
1974#5,01111#1042,487
1973#3,78716#1012,626
1972#2,39830#982,918
1971#2,66527#913,356
1970#2,39531#893,584
1969#2,51527#843,569
1968#2,24629#833,589
1967#2,55823#813,808
1966#2,45324#834,057
1965#2,93818#824,483
1964#3,37915#804,843
1963#2,21129#775,068
1962#1,98934#795,282
1961#1,92136#745,467
1960#2,06131#705,763
1959#1,85236#666,128
1958#1,85635#636,316
1957#2,02829#586,707
1956#1,79635#537,019
1955#1,73336#517,299
1954#1,76934#497,486
1953#1,73833#457,509
1952#1,97826#447,897
1951#1,70132#428,038
1950#1,55036#407,798
1949#1,73630#378,297
1948#1,77828#358,627
1947#1,57636#349,218
1946#1,31843#308,668
1945#1,54328#277,574
1944#1,18844#268,159
1943#1,18147#269,035
1942#1,18045#268,682
1941#1,22238#267,745
1940#1,17039#257,723
1939#98751#257,322
1938#1,15939#267,560
1937#98151#267,488
1936#1,18636#267,536
1935#91257#237,816
1934#87161#218,092
1933#90456#217,756
1932#78175#218,667
1931#80671#208,940
1930#76884#199,731
1929#698100#199,850
1928#75689#1810,651
1927#73993#1711,346
1926#74892#1711,774
1925#736100#1612,130
1924#80486#1612,696
1923#82878#1612,433
1922#79883#1512,631
1921#85774#1513,004
1920#87269#1313,294
1919#85866#1112,879
1918#79680#1113,338
1917#79276#1112,582
1916#78974#1111,760
1915#88555#1111,255
1914#97237#108,962
1913#83040#116,890
1912#79539#115,809
1911#1,37212#123,074
1910#1,42111#132,596
1909#1,05215#122,287
1908#1,8626#122,192
1907#81921#122,095
1906#1,10112#121,934
1905#1,2989#121,902
1904#1,00113#121,873
1903#96913#121,840
1902#1,02412#121,858
1901#79517#121,718
1900#1,17111#122,298
1899#1,3946#121,750
1898#1,04711#132,002
1897#76117#121,895
1896#1,1229#132,017
1895#98611#132,015
1894#71917#132,010
1893#76715#132,004
1892#95810#132,229
1891#89310#131,668
1890#79112#131,905
1889#9029#131,916
1888#1,2765#132,040
1887#131,704
1886#69311#131,880
1885#8427#131,808
1884#8517#131,902
1883#9205#131,705
1882#7407#131,805
1881#50311#131,670
1880#6288#131,755
First appearance
1880

In the first year the SSA published name data, Walter was already there! It came in at #13, and was given to 1,755 baby boys.


Quietest stretch: 1995–2014, when fewer than 1,100 boys a year got the name.

See more about Walter
Momentum · boys
Holding steady
  • 20 spots since 2024 (#271#251)
  • 21 spots since 2020 (#272#251)
  • 58 spots since 2015 (#309#251)
  • Biggest jump: 37 spots in 2017 (#302#265)
  • Biggest drop: 38 spots in 1998 (#273#311)
Rise & fade · boys
34 yrs to peak
  • Debuted 1880
  • Peaked 1914 at #10 (8,962 births)
  • Births halved by 1966, 52 yrs later
Top of the charts · boys
Top 10 for 1 yr
  • Top 10: 1 yr · 1914
  • Top 100: 93 yrs · run 1880–1972
  • Top 1,000: 146 yrs · run 1880–2025
Share of babies · boys
1 in 55
  • Highest: 1 in 55 boys born in 1892 were named Walter (1.8%)
  • Latest: 1 in 1,237 boys born in 2025 (0.08%)
  • Its best rank, #10 in 1914, was only 1 in 73 (1.4%) — a smaller share of a much bigger birth year
Era · boys
The 1920s
  • 19.0% of all boys named Walter (119,809) were born in this decade
Show by decade
DecadeBirthsBest rankAvg rank
1880s18,185#13 (1888)#13
1890s19,495#12 (1897)#13
1900s19,997#12 (1900)#12
1910s89,145#10 (1914)#11
1920s119,809#13 (1920)#16
1930s80,908#19 (1930)#23
1940s83,728#25 (1940)#29
1950s72,197#40 (1950)#51
1960s45,929#70 (1960)#79
1970s25,726#89 (1970)#110
1980s17,568#137 (1980)#159
1990s12,020#191 (1990)#251
2000s8,133#308 (2000)#358
2010s10,607#265 (2017)#323
2020s7,725#251 (2025)#267

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.

Walter in 1937

girls
#981
51 births · 1 in 20,863 girls
boys
#26
7,488 births · 1 in 142 boys

Top girls' names in 1937

  1. #1Mary55,641
  2. #2Barbara34,917
  3. #3Patricia26,838
  4. #4Shirley26,823
  5. #5Betty25,337
  6. #6Carol17,336
  7. #7Nancy17,074
  8. #8Dorothy16,572
  9. #9Joan15,301
  10. #10Margaret15,144
  11. #981Walter51

Top boys' names in 1937

  1. #1Robert61,842
  2. #2James56,561
  3. #3John48,755
  4. #4William40,725
  5. #5Richard32,975
  6. #6Charles30,520
  7. #7Donald27,868
  8. #8David20,981
  9. #9Thomas19,772
  10. #10George18,439
  11. #26Walter7,488
More about 1937

girls

1,064,033 girls got a published name in 1937; 1 in 20,863 of them was named Walter, which outranked 80.1% of the 4,930 girls' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 23.6% of girls (24.6% in 1880, 7.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Walter
  1. #964Octavia52
  2. #964Phillis52
  3. #964Roseanne52
  4. #981Walter51
  5. #981Armida51
  6. #981Dean51
  7. #981Gerald51
  8. #992Antonette50
  9. #992Bernita50
  10. #992Bridget50

Tied with 10 names at #981; 3 shown. Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1936
Risers
  1. 3,217Noreta#4,181#964
  2. 2,845Noretta#3,701#856
  3. 2,351Leilani#3,103#752
  4. 1,407Deann#2,263#856
  5. 1,209Norita#1,741#532
Fallers
  1. 438Dorla#951#1,389
  2. 331Vilma#951#1,282
  3. 303Imelda#979#1,282
  4. 297Lulu#695#992
  5. 292Lyda#840#1,132

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

boys

1,066,659 boys got a published name in 1937; 1 in 142 of them was named Walter, which outranked 99.4% of the 4,020 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 33.6% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Walter
  1. #23Jack8,194
  2. #24Bobby7,745
  3. #24Joe7,745
  4. #26Walter7,488
  5. #27Michael7,094
  6. #28Carl6,914
  7. #29Gary6,763
Biggest movers since 1936
Risers
  1. 1,923Tyrone#2,629#706
  2. 558Lamont#1,540#982
  3. 540Lary#1,540#1,000
  4. 416Errol#906#490
  5. 399Levon#1,356#957
Fallers
  1. 492Gaston#989#1,481
  2. 461Gorden#827#1,288
  3. 432Sergio#940#1,372
  4. 371Landon#422#793
  5. 347Harlen#747#1,094

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

See the top 100 for 1937