Boys' name · since 1882
German
German has 10,290 recorded births since 1882 in federal Social Security data, most heavily in 1991 -- full year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state rankings follow.
- #1,186 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #1,539 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 10,290
- born since 1882
- 1990s
- peak decade
German currently ranks #1539 among boys' names in America, with 10,290 babies recorded since 1882.
German has 10,290 recorded births among boys since 1882, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, ranked #1539 as of the latest data, more common than 89% of boys, busiest in the 1990s -- see the year-by-year trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution below, all drawn directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1882 to 2025.
- #1,186 of 45,481 all-time among boys
- #1,539 of 13,930 2025 SSA year
- 10,290 born since 1882
- 1990s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, German ranks #1,186 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #1,539 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. 10,290 born since 1882, peaking in the 1990s.
- #1,186 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #1,539 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 10,290
- born since 1882
- 1990s
- peak decade
German's 10,290 recorded births place it above 97.39% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.
21 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by California.
How German compares
10,290 Top 9% higher than 91% 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
German's all-time total is 28x the median boys name, and Liam still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | German | Median boys name (Takari) | #1 boys name (Liam) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 10,290 | 369 | 358,536 |
| Peak-year births | 304 | 34 | 22,252 |
German's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Splitting German's full recorded timeline at 1967, 91% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 9% in the earlier half -- usage has skewed toward the present, not a one-decade spike. Its quietest year on record was 1882, with just 5 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 1991 peak of 304 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.
German popularity over time - boys
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1882–2025
- Peak year (1991)
- 304
- Annual births at peak, across 144 years of records
German popularity over time - girls
5 total births recorded since 1993 (German as girls' name)
German by decade
1990s is the heaviest window (2,488 births, 24% of the file).
1990s was German's strongest decade.
2,488 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 24% of all-time use.
German births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 5
1880s
5 births
- 1900s 14
1900s
14 births
- 1910s 93
1910s
93 births
- 1920s 117
1920s
117 births
- 1930s 92
1930s
92 births
- 1940s 99
1940s
99 births
- 1950s 212
1950s
212 births
- 1960s 371
1960s
371 births
- 1970s 766
1970s
766 births
- 1980s
1980s
1,349 births
- 1990s
1990s
2,488 births
- 2000s
2000s
2,402 births
- 2010s
2010s
1,585 births
- 2020s 697
2020s
697 births
What this shows Peak: 1990s at 2,488 births (24% of all-time use).
How German 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 German's total volume
German by state
Where German concentrates geographically, total births since 1882
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | California | | 3,417 | 33.2% |
| #2 | Texas | | 1,647 | 16.0% |
| #3 | New York | | 762 | 7.4% |
| #4 | Arizona | | 506 | 4.9% |
| #5 | Florida | | 401 | 3.9% |
| #6 | Illinois | | 372 | 3.6% |
| #7 | New Jersey | | 202 | 2.0% |
| #8 | North Carolina | | 118 | 1.1% |
3,417 of 10,290 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 21 reporting states.
German appears in 21 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name German? ▼
Where does German sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was German most popular? ▼
Where is German most popular? ▼
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What to do with German's data
- German's decade-level peak was the 1990s (2,488 total births); usage has since declined to 697 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- California records the most Germans (3,417 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 German
Nearby Names Like German
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to German
Compare German side by side: German vs Gerald German vs Gerard German vs Gerardo
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to German
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for German: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1991)
Similar record span (~143 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, 1882–2025 (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 German 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.