US rank #2415 Boys' name Peak 1917 9,628 births

Abe — #2415 US boys' name

9,628 babies named Abe in U.S. Social Security records since 1880, with the highest year being 1917. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.

1880s4431890s5041900s5721910s20991920s15021930s6941940s5761950s5611960s4231970s3521980s2741990s2292000s4522010s6552020s292
#2415
of 14,243 boys in use

More common than 83% of names given to boys today.

1910s
Peak decade

22% of everyone ever named Abe was born in this single decade.

1917
Single peak year

280 babies were named Abe in 1917 — its busiest year on record.

What the Data Says About Abe

The Social Security Administration has registered 9,628 babies named Abe between 1880 and 2024, spanning 145 consecutive years of U.S. birth records. As a boy's name, Abe currently holds the #2415 rank among boys for 2024. The name reached its historical peak in 1917, when 280 babies received it in a single year.

Decade-level aggregation shows that Abe performed strongest in the 1910s, accumulating 2,099 births during that ten-year window. Across the 15 decades of recorded activity, Abe shows a clear decline from its mid-century high. Geographically, the name is most concentrated in New York, which accounts for 1,780 births — the largest state-level total in the dataset — followed by Texas and Pennsylvania. In total, SSA state-level files list Abe in 29 of the 51 U.S. reporting jurisdictions.

No etymological entry is currently available for Abe in our reference dataset. These figures derive from SSA's annual national and state-level name files, which include any name appearing at least five times in a given year or state-year; names below that threshold are suppressed for privacy and therefore excluded from the totals shown here. The 9,628 total represents a lower bound — actual usage may be higher in years or states where the count fell below the disclosure floor. This page is provided for informational and research purposes only and does not constitute personal, legal, or naming advice.

Abe at a glance

Outside the top 1,000

Total births

9,628

Since 1880

145 years of records

Peak year

1917

280 births that year

Strongest decade: 1910s

Current rank

#2,415

Among boys

As of 2024

Active since

1880

Recorded for 145 years

Last year on file: 2024

Abe popularity over time

Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 2024–1880

Outside the top 1,000
Peak year (1917)
280
Annual births at peak — across 145 years of records
0100200300 202420051986196719481929191018911880 50

Abe by decade

Total births in each ten-year window — peak vs trough at a glance

Peak: 1910s
Peak decade
1910s
2,099 births that decade — 22% of Abe's all-time total
1880s4431890s5041900s5721910s20991920s15021930s6941940s5761950s5611960s4231970s3521980s2741990s2292000s4522010s6552020s292

Abe by state

Where Abe concentrates geographically — total births since 1880

Geographically diffuse
Top 8 states by recorded births for the name Abe
Rank State Visual share Births Share of total
#1 New York
1,780 18.5%
#2 Texas
270 2.8%
#3 Pennsylvania
268 2.8%
#4 Ohio
253 2.6%
#5 New Jersey
235 2.4%
#6 Illinois
221 2.3%
#7 Alabama
185 1.9%
#8 Mississippi
182 1.9%
New York share of Abe's total US births 18.5%
Even split

1,780 of 9,628 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 29 reporting states.

Abe appears in 29 states. Explore state details →

Frequently Asked Questions

How popular is the name Abe?
9,628 babies have been named Abe since 1880. It currently ranks #2415 among boys. The peak year was 1917 with 280 births.
When was Abe most popular?
Abe was most popular in the 1910s decade with 2,099 total births. The single peak year was 1917.
Where is Abe most popular?
The top states for the name Abe are New York (1,780 births), Texas (270 births), Pennsylvania (268 births).
How long has the name Abe been used?
Abe has been recorded in Social Security data since 1880, spanning 145 years of data through 2024.
What names are similar to Abe?
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Abel, Abelardo, Abelino, Abenezer, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for boys.

Data Sources

Data as of 2024. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).

Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications — National Data, 1880–2024 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames). National-level data includes all names with 5 or more occurrences in a given year.

State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names — State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip). Includes all names with 5 or more occurrences per state per year; rarer names are excluded for privacy.