Luther — #1496 US boys' name
66,862 babies named Luther in U.S. Social Security records since 1880, with the highest year being 1922. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.
More common than 89% of names given to boys today.
20% of everyone ever named Luther was born in this single decade.
1,477 babies were named Luther in 1922 — its busiest year on record.
What the Data Says About Luther
The Social Security Administration has registered 66,862 babies named Luther between 1880 and 2024, spanning 145 consecutive years of U.S. birth records. As a boy's name, Luther currently holds the #1496 rank among boys for 2024. The name reached its historical peak in 1922, when 1,477 babies received it in a single year.
Decade-level aggregation shows that Luther performed strongest in the 1920s, accumulating 13,197 births during that ten-year window. Across the 15 decades of recorded activity, Luther shows a clear decline from its mid-century high. Geographically, the name is most concentrated in North Carolina, which accounts for 5,067 births — the largest state-level total in the dataset — followed by Texas and Georgia. In total, SSA state-level files list Luther in 42 of the 51 U.S. reporting jurisdictions.
No etymological entry is currently available for Luther 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 66,862 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.
Luther at a glance
Outside the top 1,000Peak year
Current rank
Active since
Luther popularity over time — boys
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 2024–1880
- Peak year (1922)
- 1,477
- Annual births at peak — across 145 years of records
Currently ranks #1496 among boys.
66,862 total births across 145 years of SSA records. Peaked in 1922 with 1,477 births in a single year.
Luther popularity over time — girls
435 total births recorded since 1907 (Luther as girls' name)
Unisex use remains the minority pattern
The girls' variant of Luther accounts for 1% of total recorded use across both genders.
Luther by decade
Total births in each ten-year window — peak vs trough at a glance
- Peak decade
- 1920s
- 13,197 births that decade — 20% of Luther's all-time total
Luther decade highlights
- Peak decade 13,197 births
- Runner-up 9,762 births
- Modern era share 2010s + 2020s
- Decades tracked with recorded births
1920s was Luther's strongest decade
13,197 babies received the name during that ten-year window — about 20% of all-time use.
Luther by state
Where Luther concentrates geographically — total births since 1880
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | North Carolina | | 5,067 | 7.6% |
| #2 | Texas | | 4,383 | 6.6% |
| #3 | Georgia | | 4,259 | 6.4% |
| #4 | South Carolina | | 3,565 | 5.3% |
| #5 | Alabama | | 3,294 | 4.9% |
| #6 | Tennessee | | 3,282 | 4.9% |
| #7 | Mississippi | | 3,164 | 4.7% |
| #8 | Virginia | | 3,057 | 4.6% |
5,067 of 66,862 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 42 reporting states.
Top 5 states
- North Carolina 7.6% of nationwide
- Texas 6.6% of nationwide
- Georgia 6.4% of nationwide
- South Carolina 5.3% of nationwide
- Alabama 4.9% of nationwide
Recorded in 42 of 51 SSA jurisdictions
North Carolina accounts for 7.6% of all recorded births nationwide — a relatively diffuse profile for this name.
Luther appears in 42 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
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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.