US rank #1167 Boys' name Peak 1942 448,793 births

Gerald — #1167 US boys' name

448,793 babies named Gerald in U.S. Social Security records since 1880, with the highest year being 1942. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.

1880s2231890s7531900s20141910s165221920s445211930s828181940s1033421950s826251960s553001970s261491980s155091990s97972000s51462010s30312020s1043
#1167
of 14,243 boys in use

More common than 92% of names given to boys today.

1940s
Peak decade

23% of everyone ever named Gerald was born in this single decade.

1942
Single peak year

11,483 babies were named Gerald in 1942 — its busiest year on record.

What the Data Says About Gerald

The Social Security Administration has registered 448,793 babies named Gerald between 1880 and 2024, spanning 145 consecutive years of U.S. birth records. As a boy's name, Gerald currently holds the #1167 rank among boys for 2024. The name reached its historical peak in 1942, when 11,483 babies received it in a single year.

Decade-level aggregation shows that Gerald performed strongest in the 1940s, accumulating 103,342 births during that ten-year window. Across the 15 decades of recorded activity, Gerald shows a clear decline from its mid-century high. Geographically, the name is most concentrated in New York, which accounts for 39,016 births — the largest state-level total in the dataset — followed by Michigan and Pennsylvania. In total, SSA state-level files list Gerald in 51 of the 51 U.S. reporting jurisdictions.

No etymological entry is currently available for Gerald 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 448,793 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.

Gerald at a glance

Outside the top 1,000

Total births

448,793

Since 1880

145 years of records

Peak year

1942

11,483 births that year

Strongest decade: 1940s

Current rank

#1,167

Among boys

As of 2024

Active since

1880

Recorded for 145 years

Last year on file: 2024

Gerald popularity over time — boys

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

Outside the top 1,000
Peak year (1942)
11,483
Annual births at peak — across 145 years of records
-5,00005,00010,00015,000 202420051986196719481929191018911880 11

Gerald popularity over time — girls

2,385 total births recorded since 1910 (Gerald as girls' name)

Unisex variant — 2,385 births
0204060 199319811970195919481937192619151910 5

Gerald by decade

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

Peak: 1940s
Peak decade
1940s
103,342 births that decade — 23% of Gerald's all-time total
1880s2231890s7531900s20141910s165221920s445211930s828181940s1033421950s826251960s553001970s261491980s155091990s97972000s51462010s30312020s1043

Gerald by state

Where Gerald concentrates geographically — total births since 1880

Geographically diffuse
Top 8 states by recorded births for the name Gerald
Rank State Visual share Births Share of total
#1 New York
39,016 8.7%
#2 Michigan
35,378 7.9%
#3 Pennsylvania
32,449 7.2%
#4 Illinois
28,070 6.3%
#5 California
25,374 5.7%
#6 Ohio
24,035 5.4%
#7 Wisconsin
19,363 4.3%
#8 Texas
17,061 3.8%
New York share of Gerald's total US births 8.7%
Even split

39,016 of 448,793 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 51 reporting states.

Gerald appears in 51 states. Explore state details →

Frequently Asked Questions

How popular is the name Gerald?
448,793 babies have been named Gerald since 1880. It currently ranks #1167 among boys. The peak year was 1942 with 11,483 births.
When was Gerald most popular?
Gerald was most popular in the 1940s decade with 103,342 total births. The single peak year was 1942.
Where is Gerald most popular?
The top states for the name Gerald are New York (39,016 births), Michigan (35,378 births), Pennsylvania (32,449 births).
How long has the name Gerald been used?
Gerald has been recorded in Social Security data since 1880, spanning 145 years of data through 2024.
What names are similar to Gerald?
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Gerard, Gerardo, Gerry, German, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for boys.

Keep exploring Gerald

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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.