Boys' name · since 1880
Barney
Since 1880, U.S. Social Security records show 16,090 babies named Barney, peaking in 1919. See the year-by-year trend, decade totals, and state rankings below, sourced from federal birth data.
- #933 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #12,010 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 16,090
- born since 1880
- 1950s
- peak decade
16,090 babies have been named Barney since 1880, making it today's #12010 boys' name.
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Barney has been recorded 16,090 times among boys since 1880, currently ranked #12010 nationally and more common than 14% of boys, with its heaviest use in the 1950s. This profile covers year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution, all derived directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1880 to 2025.
- #933 of 45,481 all-time among boys
- #12,010 of 13,930 2025 SSA year
- 16,090 born since 1880
- 1950s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Barney ranks #933 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #12,010 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. 16,090 born since 1880, peaking in the 1950s.
- #933 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #12,010 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 16,090
- born since 1880
- 1950s
- peak decade
Barney's 16,090 recorded births place it above 97.94% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.
37 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by Texas.
How Barney compares
16,090 Top 7% higher than 93% of 13,930 names currently given to boys
Based on all-time total births among currently-ranked boys 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
Barney's all-time total is 44x the median boys name, and Liam still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Barney | Median boys name (Takari) | #1 boys name (Liam) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 16,090 | 369 | 358,536 |
| Peak-year births | 304 | 34 | 22,252 |
Barney's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Divide Barney's SSA record in two at 1947 and the more recent half accounts for 40% of all births, the earlier half the remaining 60%, consistent with a name more common in the past than in recent years. Its calmest year was 2001, with only 5 births recorded -- set against the 1919 peak of 304, that's the full swing in one name's fortunes.
Barney popularity over time - boys
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025
- Peak year (1919)
- 304
- Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
Barney popularity over time - girls
91 total births recorded since 1916 (Barney as girls' name)
Barney by decade
1950s is the heaviest window (2,672 births, 17% of the file).
1950s was Barney's strongest decade.
2,672 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 17% of all-time use.
Barney births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 535
1880s
535 births
- 1890s 572
1890s
572 births
- 1900s 595
1900s
595 births
- 1910s
1910s
2,197 births
- 1920s
1920s
2,400 births
- 1930s
1930s
1,911 births
- 1940s
1940s
2,168 births
- 1950s
1950s
2,672 births
- 1960s
1960s
1,598 births
- 1970s 755
1970s
755 births
- 1980s 430
1980s
430 births
- 1990s 173
1990s
173 births
- 2000s 30
2000s
30 births
- 2010s 37
2010s
37 births
- 2020s 17
2020s
17 births
What this shows Peak: 1950s at 2,672 births (17% of all-time use).
How Barney compares to similarly-sized names
Years in SSA records vs. share of all-time use concentrated in the single peak year, among 15 boys names closest to Barney's total volume
Barney by state
Where Barney concentrates geographically, total births since 1880
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Texas | | 1,489 | 9.3% |
| #2 | New York | | 914 | 5.7% |
| #3 | California | | 909 | 5.6% |
| #4 | Georgia | | 851 | 5.3% |
| #5 | Alabama | | 636 | 4.0% |
| #6 | North Carolina | | 557 | 3.5% |
| #7 | Tennessee | | 512 | 3.2% |
| #8 | South Carolina | | 499 | 3.1% |
1,489 of 16,090 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 37 reporting states.
Barney appears in 37 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Barney? ▼
Where does Barney sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Barney most popular? ▼
Where is Barney most popular? ▼
How long has the name Barney been used? ▼
What names are similar to Barney? ▼
What to do with Barney's data
- Barney's decade-level peak was the 1950s (2,672 total births); usage has since declined to 17 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- Texas records the most Barneys (1,489 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. Texas names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Barney
Nearby Names Like Barney
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Barney
Compare Barney side by side: Barney vs Barry Barney vs Barrett Barney vs Bart
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Barney
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Barney: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1919)
Similar record span (~145 yrs)
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, 1880–2025 (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 Barney 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.