Unisex name · since 1895

Afton

5,223 babies named Afton in U.S. Social Security records since 1895, with the highest year being 1983. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.

#2,494 of 72,339
all-time among girls
#3,521 of 17,297
2025 SSA year
5,223
born since 1895
1980s
peak decade

5,223 babies have been named Afton since 1895, making it today's #3521 unisex name.

Social Security Administration records show Afton recorded 5,223 times among girls since 1895, holding rank #3521 nationally today, ahead of 80% of girls, peaking in the 1980s. This profile derives year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1895 to 2025.

  • #2,494 of 72,339 all-time among girls
  • #3,521 of 17,297 2025 SSA year
  • 5,223 born since 1895
  • 1980s peak decade

Data updated Aug 2026

The verdict

According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Afton ranks #2,494 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #3,521 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. 5,223 born since 1895, peaking in the 1980s.

#2,494 of 72,339
all-time among girls
#3,521 of 17,297
2025 SSA year
5,223
born since 1895
1980s
peak decade
0%100%Median name50%79.6%
Afton vs. every other girls name in current SSA rankings
Upper archive tier
All-time archive position

Afton's 5,223 recorded births place it above 96.55% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.

29 jurisdictions
State-record footprint

29 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by Utah.

How Afton compares

5,223 Top 13% higher than 87% of 17,297 names currently given to girls

Based on all-time total births among currently-ranked girls names. Names with fewer occurrences are grouped into wider buckets on the right.

Source U.S. Social Security Administration, national baby name data

How the numbers stack up

Afton's all-time total is 14x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.

Metric Afton Median girls name (Kyann) #1 girls name (Olivia)
All-time total births 5,223 376 567,345
Peak-year births 186 21 19,840

Afton's usage pattern, beyond the headline number

Divide Afton's SSA record in two at 1964 and the more recent half accounts for 74% of all births, the earlier half the remaining 26%, consistent with a name still gaining ground rather than fading. Its calmest year was 1898, with only 5 births recorded -- set against the 1983 peak of 186, that's the full swing in one name's fortunes.

Afton popularity over time - girls

Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1895–2025

Outside the top 1,000
Peak year (1983)
186
Annual births at peak, across 131 years of records
050100150200 189519121926194019641984199820122025 43

Afton popularity over time - boys

854 total births recorded since 1910 (Afton as boys' name)

Unisex variant - 854 births
0510152025 191019211930194119811997200820172025 9

Afton by decade

1980s is the heaviest window (1,206 births, 23% of the file).

1980s was Afton's strongest decade.

1,206 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 23% of all-time use.

Afton births by decade

Total births in each ten-year window

births

What this shows Peak: 1980s at 1,206 births (23% of all-time use).

Source U.S. Social Security Administration · Baby Names As of August 2026

How Afton compares to similarly-sized names

Years in SSA records vs. share of all-time use concentrated in the single peak year, among 15 girls names closest to Afton's total volume

Afton vs 15 similarly-sized girls names Scatter plot of 16 data points. 0%5%10%15% 050100150200 New & already peakedOld name, single-era peakNew & still diversifyingLong history, steady all along Years in SSA records % of total births in the single peak year -63, 4.3%-146, 2%-136, 2.3%-112, 5.3%-32, 7.6%-137, 3.3%-62, 6.1%-105, 5.3%-68, 4.3%-95, 6.2%-44, 6.5%-37, 5.2%-93, 6.8%-49, 11.7%-83, 6.2%Afton-131, 3.6%Afton
Afton vs 15 similarly-sized girls names

Afton by state

Where Afton concentrates geographically, total births since 1895

Regionally concentrated
Top 8 states by recorded births for the name Afton
Rank State Visual share Births Share of total
#1 Utah
1,210 23.2%
#2 Texas
237 4.5%
#3 Idaho
230 4.4%
#4 California
165 3.2%
#5 Virginia
165 3.2%
#6 Minnesota
153 2.9%
#7 Missouri
43 0.8%
#8 Illinois
32 0.6%
Utah share of Afton's total US births 23.2%
Even split

1,210 of 5,223 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 29 reporting states.

Afton appears in 29 states. Explore state details →

Frequently Asked Questions

How popular is the name Afton? ▼
Since 1895, Social Security records show 5,223 babies named Afton. Across the full SSA archive it ranks #2,494 of 72,339 girls' names by total births. In 2025, it holds #3,521 of 17,297 among girls. Its busiest year on record was 1983, with 186 births.
Where does Afton sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Afton ranks #2,494 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #3,521 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. All-time ordinal matches browse popularity (total births DESC); the current ordinal uses the 2025 SSA file. See /methodology#corpus-placement.
When was Afton most popular? ▼
Afton was most popular in the 1980s decade with 1,206 total births. The single peak year was 1983.
Where is Afton most popular? ▼
The top states for the name Afton are Utah (1,210 births), Texas (237 births), Idaho (230 births).
Is Afton a unisex name? ▼
Yes, Afton is used for both boys and girls. As a girl's name it has 5,223 births, and as a boy's name it has 854 births.
How long has the name Afton been used? ▼
Afton has been recorded in Social Security data since 1895, spanning 131 years of data through 2025.
What names are similar to Afton? ▼
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Aftyn, Aftan, Aften, Aftin. These share a common prefix and are also used for girls.

What to do with Afton's data

  • Afton's decade-level peak was the 1980s (1,206 total births); usage has since declined to 338 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
  • Utah records the most Aftons (1,210 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. Utah names

Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.

Keep exploring Afton

Nearby Names Like Afton

Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Afton

Aftyn Girl
#15521 242 births
Aftan Girl
109 births
Aften Girl
102 births
Aftin Girl
61 births

Compare Afton side by side: Afton vs Aftyn Afton vs Aftan Afton vs Aften

Or pick any two names to compare →

Related Names

Names with a similar popularity rank to Afton

Amada #3520
2,533 births · Peak 2019
Halley #3522
4,112 births · Peak 1986
Maida #3519
3,003 births · Peak 1918
Zenaida #3523
2,972 births · Peak 2023
Jemima #3518
1,832 births · Peak 2018
Annastasia #3524
2,083 births · Peak 2016
Joella #3517
4,204 births · Peak 2016
Oceana #3525
1,147 births · Peak 2004

Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span

Two nationwide peer axes for Afton: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.

Peak year is the single SSA year with the most births for that name; record span is first-to-latest year in the national files, not a recommendation or shared origin claim.

Data Sources

Data as of August 2026. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).

According to the Social Security Administration, this profile draws directly from the agency's public-use baby-name files (updated June 2026). See our methodology for the full extraction, aggregation, and privacy-suppression rules.

Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications, National Data, 1895–2025 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames).

State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names, State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip).

Name Almanac is rendered directly from the Social Security Administration's public baby-name files, no number is typed in by an editor. This profile for Afton draws directly on SSA national and state-level files, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of August 2026.