Boys' name · since 1880
Christian
Christian has 453,968 recorded births since 1880 in federal Social Security data, most heavily in 2000 -- full year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state rankings follow.
- #69 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #96 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 453,968
- born since 1880
- 2000s
- peak decade
453,968 babies have been named Christian since 1880, making it today's #96 boys' name.
Social Security Administration records show Christian recorded 453,968 times among boys since 1880, holding rank #96 nationally today, ahead of 99.3% of boys, peaking in the 2000s. This profile derives year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1880 to 2025.
- #69 of 45,481 all-time among boys
- #96 of 13,930 2025 SSA year
- 453,968 born since 1880
- 2000s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Christian ranks #69 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #96 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. 453,968 born since 1880, peaking in the 2000s.
- #69 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #96 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 453,968
- born since 1880
- 2000s
- peak decade
Christian's 453,968 recorded births place it above 99.84% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.
51 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by California.
How Christian compares
453,968 Top 1% higher than 99% 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
Christian's all-time total is 1,230x the median boys name, and Liam still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Christian | Median boys name (Takari) | #1 boys name (Liam) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 453,968 | 369 | 358,536 |
| Peak-year births | 16,059 | 34 | 22,252 |
Christian's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Splitting Christian's full recorded timeline at 1953, 99% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 1% in the earlier half -- usage has skewed toward the present, not a one-decade spike. Its quietest year on record was 1905, with just 26 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 2000 peak of 16,059 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.
Christian popularity over time - boys
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025
- Peak year (2000)
- 16,059
- Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
Christian popularity over time - girls
19,875 total births recorded since 1886 (Christian as girls' name)
Christian by decade
2000s is the heaviest window (142,433 births, 31% of the file).
2000s was Christian's strongest decade.
142,433 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 31% of all-time use.
Christian births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 486
1880s
486 births
- 1890s 404
1890s
404 births
- 1900s 321
1900s
321 births
- 1910s 1,119
1910s
1,119 births
- 1920s 1,213
1920s
1,213 births
- 1930s 876
1930s
876 births
- 1940s 1,529
1940s
1,529 births
- 1950s 3,623
1950s
3,623 births
- 1960s 10,213
1960s
10,213 births
- 1970s 24,902
1970s
24,902 births
- 1980s 30,289
1980s
30,289 births
- 1990s
1990s
126,065 births
- 2000s
2000s
142,433 births
- 2010s
2010s
84,198 births
- 2020s 26,297
2020s
26,297 births
What this shows Peak: 2000s at 142,433 births (31% of all-time use).
How Christian 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 Christian's total volume
Christian by state
Where Christian concentrates geographically, total births since 1880
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | California | | 74,033 | 16.3% |
| #2 | Texas | | 48,078 | 10.6% |
| #3 | New York | | 35,033 | 7.7% |
| #4 | Florida | | 27,822 | 6.1% |
| #5 | Illinois | | 18,086 | 4.0% |
| #6 | Pennsylvania | | 17,527 | 3.9% |
| #7 | New Jersey | | 16,740 | 3.7% |
| #8 | Georgia | | 14,276 | 3.1% |
74,033 of 453,968 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 51 reporting states.
Christian appears in 51 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Christian? ▼
Where does Christian sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Christian most popular? ▼
Where is Christian most popular? ▼
How long has the name Christian been used? ▼
What names are similar to Christian? ▼
What to do with Christian's data
- Christian's decade-level peak was the 2000s (142,433 total births); usage has since declined to 26,297 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- California records the most Christians (74,033 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. California names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Christian
Nearby Names Like Christian
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Christian
Compare Christian side by side: Christian vs Christopher Christian vs Chris Christian vs Christophe
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Christian
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Christian: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~2000)
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 Christian 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.