Boys' name · since 1950
Peterson
819 babies named Peterson in U.S. Social Security records since 1950, with the highest year being 1989. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.
- #5,820 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #8,349 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 819
- born since 1950
- 1980s
- peak decade
Peterson currently ranks #8349 among boys' names in America, with 819 babies recorded since 1950.
Peterson has 819 recorded births among boys since 1950, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, ranked #8349 as of the latest data, more common than 40% of boys, busiest in the 1980s -- see the year-by-year trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution below, all drawn directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1950 to 2025.
- #5,820 of 45,481 all-time among boys
- #8,349 of 13,930 2025 SSA year
- 819 born since 1950
- 1980s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Peterson ranks #5,820 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #8,349 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. 819 born since 1950, peaking in the 1980s.
- #5,820 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #8,349 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 819
- born since 1950
- 1980s
- peak decade
Peterson's 819 recorded births place it above 87.19% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.
The state file records this name in 3 jurisdictions, led by Florida.
How Peterson compares
819 Top 35% higher than 65% 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
Peterson's all-time total is 122% above the median boys name, and Liam still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Peterson | Median boys name (Takari) | #1 boys name (Liam) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 819 | 369 | 358,536 |
| Peak-year births | 28 | 34 | 22,252 |
Peterson's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Peterson splits its recorded history at 1993: 53% of all births land in the more recent half, 47% in the earlier half, an evenly balanced pattern over time. The single quietest year was 1950 (5 births) -- compare that against the 1989 peak of 28 for a sense of just how much the name's popularity has swung.
Peterson popularity over time
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1950–2025
- Peak year (1989)
- 28
- Annual births at peak, across 76 years of records
Peterson by decade
1980s is the heaviest window (178 births, 22% of the file).
1980s was Peterson's strongest decade.
178 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 22% of all-time use.
Peterson births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1950s 37
1950s
37 births
- 1960s 50
1960s
50 births
- 1970s 69
1970s
69 births
- 1980s
1980s
178 births
- 1990s
1990s
175 births
- 2000s
2000s
143 births
- 2010s
2010s
114 births
- 2020s 53
2020s
53 births
What this shows Peak: 1980s at 178 births (22% of all-time use).
How Peterson 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 Peterson's total volume
Peterson by state
Where Peterson concentrates geographically, total births since 1950
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Florida | | 175 | 21.4% |
| #2 | New York | | 16 | 2.0% |
| #3 | California | | 5 | 0.6% |
175 of 819 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 3 reporting states.
Frequently Asked Questions
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What to do with Peterson's data
- Peterson's decade-level peak was the 1980s (178 total births); usage has since declined to 53 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- Florida records the most Petersons (175 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. Florida names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Peterson
Nearby Names Like Peterson
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Peterson
Compare Peterson side by side: Peterson vs Peter Peterson vs Pete Peterson vs Petros
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Peterson
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Peterson: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1989)
Similar record span (~75 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, 1950–2025 (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 Peterson 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.