Boys' name · since 1880
Doctor
379 babies named Doctor in U.S. Social Security records since 1880, with the highest year being 1920. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.
- #9,316 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- 379
- born since 1880
- 1920s
- peak decade
Doctor is not among the current top-ranked boys names; 379 have been recorded since 1880.
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Doctor has been recorded 379 times among boys since 1880, though it is not among the currently most-used boys names, with its heaviest use in the 1920s. 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 1951.
- #9,316 of 45,481 all-time among boys
- 379 born since 1880
- 1920s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Doctor ranks #9,316 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first). 379 born since 1880, peaking in the 1920s.
- #9,316 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- 379
- born since 1880
- 1920s
- peak decade
Doctor's 379 recorded births place it above 79.48% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.
The state file records this name in 1 jurisdictions, led by North Carolina.
Doctor's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Divide Doctor's SSA record in two at 1914 and the more recent half accounts for 57% of all births, the earlier half the remaining 43%, a genuinely balanced usage pattern. Its calmest year was 1885, with only 5 births recorded -- set against the 1920 peak of 17, that's the full swing in one name's fortunes.
Doctor popularity over time
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–1951
- Peak year (1920)
- 17
- Annual births at peak, across 72 years of records
No longer in the modern top-1000, last recorded 1951.
379 total births across 72 years of SSA records. Peaked in 1920 with 17 births in a single year.
Doctor by decade
1920s is the heaviest window (97 births, 26% of the file).
1920s was Doctor's strongest decade.
97 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 26% of all-time use.
Doctor births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s
1880s
65 births
- 1890s
1890s
65 births
- 1900s 14
1900s
14 births
- 1910s
1910s
96 births
- 1920s
1920s
97 births
- 1930s 36
1930s
36 births
- 1950s 6
1950s
6 births
What this shows Peak: 1920s at 97 births (26% of all-time use).
Doctor decade highlights
- Peak decade 97 births
- Runner-up 96 births
- Modern era share 2010s + 2020s
- Decades tracked with recorded births
Doctor by state
Where Doctor concentrates geographically, total births since 1880
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | North Carolina | | 35 | 9.2% |
35 of 379 births nationwide.
Top 5 states
- North Carolina 9.2% of nationwide
Recorded in 1 of 51 SSA jurisdictions
North Carolina accounts for 9.2% of all recorded births nationwide - a relatively diffuse profile for this name.
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Doctor? ▼
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What to do with Doctor's data
- Doctor's decade-level peak was the 1920s (97 total births); usage has since declined to 6 in the 1950s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- North Carolina records the most Doctors (35 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. North Carolina names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Doctor
Nearby Names Like Doctor
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Doctor
Compare Doctor side by side: Doctor vs Dock Doctor vs Doc Doctor vs Dockie
Related Names
Names with a similar number of total births
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Doctor: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1920)
Similar record span (~71 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, 1880–1951 (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 Doctor 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.
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