US rank #2149 Boys' name Peak 1921 289,108 births

Earl — #2149 US boys' name

289,108 babies named Earl in U.S. Social Security records since 1880, with the highest year being 1921. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.

1880s48301890s82971900s92511910s402731920s636021930s446131940s391271950s326521960s203691970s114041980s73981990s39082000s19062010s11022020s376
#2149
of 14,243 boys in use

More common than 85% of names given to boys today.

1920s
Peak decade

22% of everyone ever named Earl was born in this single decade.

1921
Single peak year

6,754 babies were named Earl in 1921 — its busiest year on record.

What the Data Says About Earl

The Social Security Administration has registered 289,108 babies named Earl between 1880 and 2024, spanning 145 consecutive years of U.S. birth records. As a boy's name, Earl currently holds the #2149 rank among boys for 2024. The name reached its historical peak in 1921, when 6,754 babies received it in a single year.

Decade-level aggregation shows that Earl performed strongest in the 1920s, accumulating 63,602 births during that ten-year window. Across the 15 decades of recorded activity, Earl shows a clear decline from its mid-century high. Geographically, the name is most concentrated in Pennsylvania, which accounts for 20,113 births — the largest state-level total in the dataset — followed by Ohio and Illinois. In total, SSA state-level files list Earl in 51 of the 51 U.S. reporting jurisdictions.

No etymological entry is currently available for Earl in our reference dataset. These figures derive from SSA's annual national and state-level name files, which include any name appearing at least five times in a given year or state-year; names below that threshold are suppressed for privacy and therefore excluded from the totals shown here. The 289,108 total represents a lower bound — actual usage may be higher in years or states where the count fell below the disclosure floor. This page is provided for informational and research purposes only and does not constitute personal, legal, or naming advice.

Earl at a glance

Outside the top 1,000

Total births

289,108

Since 1880

145 years of records

Peak year

1921

6,754 births that year

Strongest decade: 1920s

Current rank

#2,149

Among boys

As of 2024

Active since

1880

Recorded for 145 years

Last year on file: 2024

Earl popularity over time — boys

Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 2024–1880

Outside the top 1,000
Peak year (1921)
6,754
Annual births at peak — across 145 years of records
-2,00002,0004,0006,0008,000 202420051986196719481929191018911880 335

Earl popularity over time — girls

2,247 total births recorded since 1881 (Earl as girls' name)

Unisex variant — 2,247 births
020406080 198819741961194819351922190918961881 5

Earl by decade

Total births in each ten-year window — peak vs trough at a glance

Peak: 1920s
Peak decade
1920s
63,602 births that decade — 22% of Earl's all-time total
1880s48301890s82971900s92511910s402731920s636021930s446131940s391271950s326521960s203691970s114041980s73981990s39082000s19062010s11022020s376

Earl by state

Where Earl concentrates geographically — total births since 1880

Geographically diffuse
Top 8 states by recorded births for the name Earl
Rank State Visual share Births Share of total
#1 Pennsylvania
20,113 7.0%
#2 Ohio
14,805 5.1%
#3 Illinois
13,896 4.8%
#4 New York
11,951 4.1%
#5 Texas
11,442 4.0%
#6 Michigan
10,428 3.6%
#7 California
10,273 3.6%
#8 Kentucky
10,165 3.5%
Pennsylvania share of Earl's total US births 7.0%
Even split

20,113 of 289,108 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 51 reporting states.

Earl appears in 51 states. Explore state details →

Frequently Asked Questions

How popular is the name Earl?
289,108 babies have been named Earl since 1880. It currently ranks #2149 among boys. The peak year was 1921 with 6,754 births.
When was Earl most popular?
Earl was most popular in the 1920s decade with 63,602 total births. The single peak year was 1921.
Where is Earl most popular?
The top states for the name Earl are Pennsylvania (20,113 births), Ohio (14,805 births), Illinois (13,896 births).
How long has the name Earl been used?
Earl has been recorded in Social Security data since 1880, spanning 145 years of data through 2024.
What names are similar to Earl?
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Earnest, Earle, Early, Earlie, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for boys.

Data Sources

Data as of 2024. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).

Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications — National Data, 1880–2024 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames). National-level data includes all names with 5 or more occurrences in a given year.

State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names — State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip). Includes all names with 5 or more occurrences per state per year; rarer names are excluded for privacy.