Unisex name · since 1880
Sumner
2,444 babies named Sumner in U.S. Social Security records since 1880, with the highest year being 1920. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.
- #2,912 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #5,400 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 2,444
- born since 1880
- 1920s
- peak decade
Yes -- Sumner is the #5400 most popular unisex name in the U.S. today, with 2,444 recorded since 1880.
Social Security Administration records show Sumner recorded 2,444 times among boys since 1880, holding rank #5400 nationally today, ahead of 61% of boys, peaking in the 1920s. This profile derives year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1880 to 2025.
- #2,912 of 45,481 all-time among boys
- #5,400 of 13,930 2025 SSA year
- 2,444 born since 1880
- 1920s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Sumner ranks #2,912 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #5,400 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. 2,444 born since 1880, peaking in the 1920s.
- #2,912 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #5,400 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 2,444
- born since 1880
- 1920s
- peak decade
Sumner's 2,444 recorded births place it above 93.59% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.
6 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by Massachusetts.
How Sumner compares
2,444 Top 20% higher than 80% 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
Sumner's all-time total is 7x the median boys name, and Liam still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Sumner | Median boys name (Takari) | #1 boys name (Liam) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 2,444 | 369 | 358,536 |
| Peak-year births | 65 | 34 | 22,252 |
Sumner's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Splitting Sumner's full recorded timeline at 1951, 35% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 65% in the earlier half -- the name was more prevalent in its earlier era than it is today. Its quietest year on record was 1882, with just 5 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 1920 peak of 65 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.
Sumner popularity over time - boys
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025
- Peak year (1920)
- 65
- Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
Sumner popularity over time - girls
218 total births recorded since 1979 (Sumner as girls' name)
Sumner by decade
1920s is the heaviest window (570 births, 23% of the file).
1920s was Sumner's strongest decade.
570 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 23% of all-time use.
Sumner births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 77
1880s
77 births
- 1890s 43
1890s
43 births
- 1900s 50
1900s
50 births
- 1910s
1910s
339 births
- 1920s
1920s
570 births
- 1930s
1930s
269 births
- 1940s 218
1940s
218 births
- 1950s 122
1950s
122 births
- 1960s 67
1960s
67 births
- 1970s 46
1970s
46 births
- 1980s 70
1980s
70 births
- 1990s 200
1990s
200 births
- 2000s 170
2000s
170 births
- 2010s 125
2010s
125 births
- 2020s 78
2020s
78 births
What this shows Peak: 1920s at 570 births (23% of all-time use).
How Sumner 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 Sumner's total volume
Sumner by state
Where Sumner concentrates geographically, total births since 1880
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Massachusetts | | 640 | 26.2% |
| #2 | Maine | | 17 | 0.7% |
| #3 | New York | | 15 | 0.6% |
| #4 | California | | 11 | 0.5% |
| #5 | Illinois | | 5 | 0.2% |
| #6 | Ohio | | 5 | 0.2% |
640 of 2,444 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 6 reporting states.
Frequently Asked Questions
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What to do with Sumner's data
- Sumner's decade-level peak was the 1920s (570 total births); usage has since declined to 78 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- Massachusetts records the most Sumners (640 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. Massachusetts names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Sumner
Nearby Names Like Sumner
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Sumner
Compare Sumner side by side: Sumner vs Summit Sumner vs Summer Sumner vs Sumit
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Sumner
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Sumner: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1920)
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 Sumner 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.