Williams

Last seen for girls in 1981 at #10,411 · #3,036 for boys in 2025, 40 births
Given to boys 99.6% of the time

Showing

GirlsBoys

Peak · boys: #488
1887 · 13 births
Debut · boys: 1880
11 births
In top 100 · boys: never
of 146 years
Total births · boys: 6,126
since 1880

Williams over time

boys

Rank among boys' names. Williams has never cracked the top 400 here.

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

Show data table

Year	girls		boys
	rank	births	rank	births
2025	—		#3,036	40
2024	—		#2,527	53
2023	—		#2,387	57
2022	—		#3,053	40
2021	—		#2,732	46
2020	—		#3,074	37
2019	—		#2,766	45
2018	—		#2,472	52
2017	—		#2,840	42
2016	—		#3,161	36
2015	—		#2,684	45
2014	—		#2,985	38
2013	—		#2,848	40
2012	—		#2,594	47
2011	—		#2,663	45
2010	—		#3,128	36
2009	—		#2,320	56
2008	—		#2,039	68
2007	—		#2,139	63
2006	—		#2,221	57
2005	—		#2,237	53
2004	—		#2,208	52
2003	—		#1,987	58
2002	—		#1,832	62
2001	—		#1,777	63
2000	—		#2,087	48
1999	—		#1,858	53
1998	—		#2,157	42
1997	—		#1,933	47
1996	—		#1,933	46
1995	—		#2,556	29
1994	—		#1,734	51
1993	—		#1,539	59
1992	—		#1,621	54
1991	—		#1,798	44
1990	—		#1,336	69
1989	—		#1,891	39
1988	—		#1,618	44
1987	—		#1,506	47
1986	—		#1,535	43
1985	—		#1,794	33
1984	—		#1,656	35
1983	—		#1,711	33
1982	—		#1,441	44
1981	#10,411	5	#1,899	29
1980	#10,392	5	#1,619	36
1979	—		#1,711	33
1978	—		#1,537	37
1977	—		#1,823	28
1976	—		#1,346	43
1975	—		#1,345	42
1974	#6,900	7	#1,244	45
1973	—		#1,485	33
1972	—		#1,210	46
1971	—		#1,070	58
1970	—		#1,337	39
1969	—		#1,075	52
1968	—		#1,100	46
1967	—		#1,102	45
1966	—		#1,073	47
1965	—		#1,000	54
1964	—		#1,126	46
1963	—		#1,012	56
1962	—		#1,147	45
1961	—		#940	66
1960	—		#1,058	53
1959	—		#993	60
1958	#4,890	7	#994	59
1957	—		#936	65
1956	—		#977	58
1955	—		#847	75
1954	—		#1,052	50
1953	—		#1,015	51
1952	—		#1,066	46
1951	—		#934	56
1950	—		#741	86
1949	—		#856	64
1948	—		#891	59
1947	—		#900	60
1946	—		#819	64
1945	—		#927	48
1944	—		#861	54
1943	—		#943	50
1942	—		#900	54
1941	—		#925	47
1940	—		#711	73
1939	—		#867	50
1938	—		#869	51
1937	—		#813	57
1936	—		#972	41
1935	—		#771	64
1934	—		#836	56
1933	—		#980	42
1932	—		#841	57
1931	—		#858	55
1930	—		#738	74
1929	—		#869	58
1928	—		#806	66
1927	—		#805	68
1926	—		#793	68
1925	—		#998	47
1924	—		#849	65
1923	—		#930	54
1922	—		#958	53
1921	—		#981	51
1920	—		#775	73
1919	—		#1,009	45
1918	—		#894	55
1917	—		#982	44
1916	—		#840	55
1915	—		#846	53
1914	—		#788	45
1913	—		#1,112	21
1912	—		#783	31
1911	—		#667	22
1910	—		#782	15
1909	—		#590	20
1908	—		#613	18
1907	—		#815	11
1906	—		#709	12
1905	—		#699	12
1904	—		#587	15
1903	—		#783	9
1902	—		#687	11
1901	—		#637	11
1900	—		#649	15
1899	—		#714	9
1898	—		#635	12
1897	—		#556	14
1896	—		#778	9
1895	—		#685	10
1894	—		#594	12
1893	—		#836	7
1892	—		#497	16
1891	—		#766	7
1890	—		#629	10
1889	—		#878	6
1888	—		#704	9
1887	—		#488	13
1886	—		#512	13
1885	—		#577	11
1884	—		#570	11
1883	—		#497	13
1882	—		#754	7
1881	—		#706	7
1880	—		#571	11

First appearance

1880

In the first year the SSA published name data, Williams was already there! It came in at #571, and was given to 11 baby boys.

Quietest stretch: 1888–1889, when fewer than 10 boys a year got the name.

See more about Williams

Momentum · boys

Holding steady

509 spots since 2024 (#2,527 → #3,036)
38 spots since 2020 (#3,074 → #3,036)
352 spots since 2015 (#2,684 → #3,036)
Biggest jump: 324 spots in 1914 (#1,112 → #788)
Biggest drop: 339 spots in 1893 (#497 → #836)

Rise & fade · boys

7 yrs to peak

Debuted 1880
Peaked 1887 at #488 (13 births)
Births halved by 1889, 2 yrs later

Top of the charts · boys

Top 1,000 for 77 yrs

Top 10: never
Top 100: never
Top 1,000: 77 yrs · run 1880–1912

Share of babies · boys

1 in 7,627

Highest: 1 in 7,627 boys born in 1892 were named Williams (0.01%)
Latest: 1 in 42,702 boys born in 2025 (0.00%)
Its best rank, #488 in 1887, was only 1 in 7,801 (0.01%) — a smaller share of a much bigger birth year

Era · boys

The 1950s

9.9% of all boys named Williams (606) were born in this decade

Show by decade

Decade	Births	Best rank	Avg rank
1880s	101	#488 (1887)	#626
1890s	106	#497 (1892)	#669
1900s	134	#587 (1904)	#677
1910s	386	#667 (1911)	#870
1920s	603	#775 (1920)	#876
1930s	547	#738 (1930)	#855
1940s	573	#711 (1940)	#873
1950s	606	#741 (1950)	#956
1960s	510	#940 (1961)	#1,063
1970s	404	#1,070 (1971)	#1,411
1980s	383	#1,441 (1982)	#1,667
1990s	494	#1,336 (1990)	#1,847
2000s	580	#1,777 (2001)	#2,085
2010s	426	#2,472 (2018)	#2,814
2020s	273	#2,387 (2023)	#2,802

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.

Williams in 1978

boys

#1,537

37 births · 1 in 44,374 boys

Top boys' names in 1978

#1Michael67,127
#2Jason51,600
#3Christopher47,236
#4David40,684
#5James39,894
#6Matthew34,282
#7John34,014
#8Robert33,374
#9Brian29,432
#10Joseph26,663
⋯
#1,537Williams37

More about 1978

boys

1,641,837 boys got a published name in 1978; 1 in 44,374 of them was named Williams, which outranked 77.3% of the 6,762 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 24.6% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Williams

#1,508Ritchie38
#1,508Teodoro38
#1,508Tramaine38
#1,537Williams37
#1,537Adonis37
#1,537Adriel37
#1,537Antwaun37
#1,570Ashton36
#1,570Avi36
#1,570Brantley36

Tied with 32 names at #1,537; 3 shown. Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1977

Risers

↑ 3,237Dequan#4,164 → #927
↑ 626Nicholaus#1,367 → #741
↑ 617Nicklaus#1,515 → #898
↑ 578Zebulon#1,476 → #898
↑ 424Anwar#1,121 → #697

Fallers

↓ 674Kinte#834 → #1,508
↓ 668Kunta#572 → #1,240
↓ 417Telly#732 → #1,149
↓ 415Lesley#937 → #1,352
↓ 310Amin#904 → #1,214

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

See the top 100 for 1978 →