Boys' name · since 2002

Cavanaugh

Cavanaugh has 59 recorded births since 2002 in federal Social Security data, most heavily in 2006 -- full year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state rankings follow.

#20,962 of 45,481
all-time among boys
#12,855 of 13,930
2025 SSA year
59
born since 2002
2010s
peak decade

Yes -- Cavanaugh is the #12855 most popular boys' name in the U.S. today, with 59 recorded since 2002.

Social Security Administration records show Cavanaugh recorded 59 times among boys since 2002, holding rank #12855 nationally today, ahead of 8% of boys, peaking in the 2010s. This profile derives year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 2002 to 2025.

  • #20,962 of 45,481 all-time among boys
  • #12,855 of 13,930 2025 SSA year
  • 59 born since 2002
  • 2010s peak decade

Data updated Aug 2026

The verdict

According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Cavanaugh ranks #20,962 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #12,855 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. 59 born since 2002, peaking in the 2010s.

#20,962 of 45,481
all-time among boys
#12,855 of 13,930
2025 SSA year
59
born since 2002
2010s
peak decade
0%100%Median name50%7.7%
Cavanaugh vs. every other boys name in current SSA rankings
Below the archive median
All-time archive position

Cavanaugh's 59 recorded births place it above 53.7% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.

National only
State-record footprint

No state rows cleared SSA’s public reporting threshold for this name.

How Cavanaugh compares

59 19th percentile among 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

Cavanaugh's all-time total is 84% below the median boys name, and Liam still leads by a wide margin.

Metric Cavanaugh Median boys name (Takari) #1 boys name (Liam)
All-time total births 59 369 358,536
Peak-year births 8 34 22,252

Cavanaugh's usage pattern, beyond the headline number

Splitting Cavanaugh's full recorded timeline at 2014, 58% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 42% in the earlier half -- a fairly even split across the full record. Its quietest year on record was 2002, with just 5 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 2006 peak of 8 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.

Cavanaugh popularity over time

Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 2002–2025

Outside the top 1,000
Peak year (2006)
8
Annual births at peak, across 24 years of records
456789 200220032006201220142016201720222025 5

Cavanaugh by decade

2010s is the heaviest window (28 births, 47% of the file).

2010s was Cavanaugh's strongest decade.

28 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 47% of all-time use.

Cavanaugh births by decade

Total births in each ten-year window

births

What this shows Peak: 2010s at 28 births (47% of all-time use).

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

Frequently Asked Questions

How popular is the name Cavanaugh?
59 babies have been named Cavanaugh since 2002. All-time, it sits at #20,962 of 45,481 boys' names by recorded births. In 2025, it ranks #12,855 of 13,930 among boys. The peak year was 2006 with 8 births.
Where does Cavanaugh sit in the SSA name archive?
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Cavanaugh ranks #20,962 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #12,855 of 13,930 among boys' 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 Cavanaugh most popular?
Cavanaugh was most popular in the 2010s decade with 28 total births. The single peak year was 2006.
How long has the name Cavanaugh been used?
Cavanaugh has been recorded in Social Security data since 2002, spanning 24 years of data through 2025.
What names are similar to Cavanaugh?
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Cavan, Cavin, Caven, Cavon, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for boys.

What to do with Cavanaugh's data

  • Cavanaugh's usage has stayed within range of its 2010s decade-level peak (28 total births) through the 2020s (13) -- a comparatively stable name, not a fading trend.

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

Keep exploring Cavanaugh

Nearby Names Like Cavanaugh

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

Names with a similar popularity rank to Cavanaugh

Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span

Two nationwide peer axes for Cavanaugh: 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, 2002–2025 (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 Cavanaugh 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.