Harvey — #244 US boys' name
126,529 babies named Harvey 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.
More common than 98% of names given to boys today.
17% of everyone ever named Harvey was born in this single decade.
2,287 babies were named Harvey in 1921 — its busiest year on record.
What the Data Says About Harvey
The Social Security Administration has registered 126,529 babies named Harvey between 1880 and 2024, spanning 145 consecutive years of U.S. birth records. As a boy's name, Harvey currently holds the #244 rank among boys for 2024. The name reached its historical peak in 1921, when 2,287 babies received it in a single year.
Decade-level aggregation shows that Harvey performed strongest in the 1920s, accumulating 21,785 births during that ten-year window. Across the 15 decades of recorded activity, Harvey shows a clear decline from its mid-century high. Geographically, the name is most concentrated in New York, which accounts for 10,150 births — the largest state-level total in the dataset — followed by Texas and Pennsylvania. In total, SSA state-level files list Harvey in 51 of the 51 U.S. reporting jurisdictions.
No etymological entry is currently available for Harvey 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 126,529 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.
Harvey at a glance
Top 1,000 boys' namePeak year
Current rank
Active since
Harvey popularity over time — boys
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 2024–1880
- Peak year (1921)
- 2,287
- Annual births at peak — across 145 years of records
Currently ranks #244 among boys.
126,529 total births across 145 years of SSA records. Peaked in 1921 with 2,287 births in a single year.
Harvey popularity over time — girls
848 total births recorded since 1897 (Harvey as girls' name)
Unisex use remains the minority pattern
The girls' variant of Harvey accounts for 1% of total recorded use across both genders.
Harvey by decade
Total births in each ten-year window — peak vs trough at a glance
- Peak decade
- 1920s
- 21,785 births that decade — 17% of Harvey's all-time total
Harvey decade highlights
- Peak decade 21,785 births
- Runner-up 20,763 births
- Modern era share 2010s + 2020s
- Decades tracked with recorded births
1920s was Harvey's strongest decade
21,785 babies received the name during that ten-year window — about 17% of all-time use.
Harvey by state
Where Harvey concentrates geographically — total births since 1880
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | New York | | 10,150 | 8.0% |
| #2 | Texas | | 7,174 | 5.7% |
| #3 | Pennsylvania | | 6,930 | 5.5% |
| #4 | North Carolina | | 5,923 | 4.7% |
| #5 | California | | 5,388 | 4.3% |
| #6 | Illinois | | 4,752 | 3.8% |
| #7 | Michigan | | 4,722 | 3.7% |
| #8 | Ohio | | 4,236 | 3.3% |
10,150 of 126,529 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 51 reporting states.
Top 5 states
- New York 8.0% of nationwide
- Texas 5.7% of nationwide
- Pennsylvania 5.5% of nationwide
- North Carolina 4.7% of nationwide
- California 4.3% of nationwide
Recorded in 51 of 51 SSA jurisdictions
New York accounts for 8.0% of all recorded births nationwide — a relatively diffuse profile for this name.
Harvey appears in 51 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
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Keep exploring Harvey
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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.