Boys' name · since 1880
Stanford
Stanford has 7,727 recorded births since 1880 in federal Social Security data, most heavily in 1954 -- full year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state rankings follow.
- #1,395 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #6,819 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 7,727
- born since 1880
- 1950s
- peak decade
Stanford currently ranks #6819 among boys' names in America, with 7,727 babies recorded since 1880.
Stanford has 7,727 recorded births among boys since 1880, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, ranked #6819 as of the latest data, more common than 51% of boys, busiest in the 1950s -- see the year-by-year trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution below, all drawn directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1880 to 2025.
- #1,395 of 45,481 all-time among boys
- #6,819 of 13,930 2025 SSA year
- 7,727 born since 1880
- 1950s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Stanford ranks #1,395 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #6,819 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. 7,727 born since 1880, peaking in the 1950s.
- #1,395 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #6,819 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 7,727
- born since 1880
- 1950s
- peak decade
Stanford's 7,727 recorded births place it above 96.93% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.
28 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by Pennsylvania.
How Stanford compares
7,727 Top 10% higher than 90% 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
Stanford's all-time total is 21x the median boys name, and Liam still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Stanford | Median boys name (Takari) | #1 boys name (Liam) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 7,727 | 369 | 358,536 |
| Peak-year births | 135 | 34 | 22,252 |
Stanford's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Stanford splits its recorded history at 1960: 35% of all births land in the more recent half, 65% in the earlier half, leaning more toward its earlier era than today's. The single quietest year was 1901 (5 births) -- compare that against the 1954 peak of 135 for a sense of just how much the name's popularity has swung.
Stanford popularity over time
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025
- Peak year (1954)
- 135
- Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
Stanford by decade
1950s is the heaviest window (1,191 births, 15% of the file).
1950s was Stanford's strongest decade.
1,191 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 15% of all-time use.
Stanford births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 12
1880s
12 births
- 1890s 29
1890s
29 births
- 1900s 104
1900s
104 births
- 1910s
1910s
662 births
- 1920s
1920s
1,055 births
- 1930s
1930s
960 births
- 1940s
1940s
986 births
- 1950s
1950s
1,191 births
- 1960s
1960s
936 births
- 1970s
1970s
585 births
- 1980s 456
1980s
456 births
- 1990s 334
1990s
334 births
- 2000s 185
2000s
185 births
- 2010s 149
2010s
149 births
- 2020s 83
2020s
83 births
What this shows Peak: 1950s at 1,191 births (15% of all-time use).
How Stanford 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 Stanford's total volume
Stanford by state
Where Stanford concentrates geographically, total births since 1880
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Pennsylvania | | 459 | 5.9% |
| #2 | California | | 401 | 5.2% |
| #3 | New York | | 248 | 3.2% |
| #4 | Ohio | | 199 | 2.6% |
| #5 | Louisiana | | 192 | 2.5% |
| #6 | Illinois | | 180 | 2.3% |
| #7 | Georgia | | 134 | 1.7% |
| #8 | Texas | | 129 | 1.7% |
459 of 7,727 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 28 reporting states.
Stanford appears in 28 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Stanford? ▼
Where does Stanford sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Stanford most popular? ▼
Where is Stanford most popular? ▼
How long has the name Stanford been used? ▼
What names are similar to Stanford? ▼
What to do with Stanford's data
- Stanford's decade-level peak was the 1950s (1,191 total births); usage has since declined to 83 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- Pennsylvania records the most Stanfords (459 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. Pennsylvania names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Stanford
Nearby Names Like Stanford
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Stanford
Compare Stanford side by side: Stanford vs Stanley Stanford vs Stacy Stanford vs Stacey
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Stanford
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Stanford: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1954)
Similar record span (~145 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, 1880–2025 (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 Stanford 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.