Boys' name · since 1880
Timothy
1,084,192 babies named Timothy in U.S. Social Security records since 1880, with the highest year being 1959. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.
- #26 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #203 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 1,084,192
- born since 1880
- 1960s
- peak decade
1,084,192 babies have been named Timothy since 1880, making it today's #203 boys' name.
Social Security Administration records show Timothy recorded 1,084,192 times among boys since 1880, holding rank #203 nationally today, ahead of 99% of boys, peaking in the 1960s. This profile derives year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1880 to 2025.
- #26 of 45,481 all-time among boys
- #203 of 13,930 2025 SSA year
- 1,084,192 born since 1880
- 1960s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Timothy ranks #26 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #203 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. 1,084,192 born since 1880, peaking in the 1960s.
- #26 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #203 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 1,084,192
- born since 1880
- 1960s
- peak decade
Timothy's 1,084,192 recorded births place it above 99.94% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.
51 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by California.
How Timothy compares
1,084,192 Top 1% higher than 99% 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
Timothy's all-time total is 2,938x the median boys name, and Liam still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Timothy | Median boys name (Takari) | #1 boys name (Liam) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 1,084,192 | 369 | 358,536 |
| Peak-year births | 30,783 | 34 | 22,252 |
Timothy's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Splitting Timothy's full recorded timeline at 1953, 91% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 9% in the earlier half -- usage has skewed toward the present, not a one-decade spike. Its quietest year on record was 1903, with just 49 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 1959 peak of 30,783 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.
Timothy popularity over time - boys
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025
- Peak year (1959)
- 30,783
- Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
Timothy popularity over time - girls
4,328 total births recorded since 1921 (Timothy as girls' name)
Timothy by decade
1960s is the heaviest window (276,837 births, 26% of the file).
1960s was Timothy's strongest decade.
276,837 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 26% of all-time use.
Timothy births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s 693
1880s
693 births
- 1890s 650
1890s
650 births
- 1900s 647
1900s
647 births
- 1910s 1,918
1910s
1,918 births
- 1920s 2,960
1920s
2,960 births
- 1930s 5,105
1930s
5,105 births
- 1940s 43,503
1940s
43,503 births
- 1950s
1950s
198,324 births
- 1960s
1960s
276,837 births
- 1970s
1970s
181,260 births
- 1980s
1980s
172,835 births
- 1990s 107,772
1990s
107,772 births
- 2000s 52,470
2000s
52,470 births
- 2010s 28,234
2010s
28,234 births
- 2020s 10,984
2020s
10,984 births
What this shows Peak: 1960s at 276,837 births (26% of all-time use).
How Timothy 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 Timothy's total volume
Timothy by state
Where Timothy concentrates geographically, total births since 1880
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | California | | 86,655 | 8.0% |
| #2 | New York | | 75,956 | 7.0% |
| #3 | Ohio | | 72,334 | 6.7% |
| #4 | Pennsylvania | | 62,329 | 5.7% |
| #5 | Illinois | | 62,068 | 5.7% |
| #6 | Michigan | | 56,186 | 5.2% |
| #7 | Texas | | 44,655 | 4.1% |
| #8 | Florida | | 33,167 | 3.1% |
86,655 of 1,084,192 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 51 reporting states.
Timothy appears in 51 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Timothy? ▼
Where does Timothy sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Timothy most popular? ▼
Where is Timothy most popular? ▼
How long has the name Timothy been used? ▼
What names are similar to Timothy? ▼
What to do with Timothy's data
- Timothy's decade-level peak was the 1960s (276,837 total births); usage has since declined to 10,984 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- California records the most Timothys (86,655 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. California names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Timothy
Nearby Names Like Timothy
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Timothy
Compare Timothy side by side: Timothy vs Tim Timothy vs Timmy Timothy vs Timmothy
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Timothy
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Timothy: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1959)
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 Timothy 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.