Boys' name · since 1880

Willian

Since 1880, U.S. Social Security records show 4,074 babies named Willian, peaking in 1929. See the year-by-year trend, decade totals, and state rankings below, sourced from federal birth data.

#2,054 of 45,481
all-time among boys
#4,861 of 13,930
2025 SSA year
4,074
born since 1880
1920s
peak decade

4,074 babies have been named Willian since 1880, making it today's #4861 boys' name.

According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Willian has been recorded 4,074 times among boys since 1880, currently ranked #4861 nationally and more common than 65% of boys, with its heaviest use in the 1920s. This profile covers year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution, all derived directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1880 to 2025.

  • #2,054 of 45,481 all-time among boys
  • #4,861 of 13,930 2025 SSA year
  • 4,074 born since 1880
  • 1920s peak decade

Data updated Aug 2026

The verdict

According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Willian ranks #2,054 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #4,861 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. 4,074 born since 1880, peaking in the 1920s.

#2,054 of 45,481
all-time among boys
#4,861 of 13,930
2025 SSA year
4,074
born since 1880
1920s
peak decade
0%100%Median name50%65.1%
Willian vs. every other boys name in current SSA rankings
Upper archive tier
All-time archive position

Willian's 4,074 recorded births place it above 95.48% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.

16 jurisdictions
State-record footprint

16 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by California.

How Willian compares

4,074 Top 15% higher than 85% 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

Willian's all-time total is 11x the median boys name, and Liam still leads by a wide margin.

Metric Willian Median boys name (Takari) #1 boys name (Liam)
All-time total births 4,074 369 358,536
Peak-year births 84 34 22,252

Willian's usage pattern, beyond the headline number

Splitting Willian's full recorded timeline at 1957, 42% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 58% in the earlier half -- a fairly even split across the full record. Its quietest year on record was 1885, with just 5 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 1929 peak of 84 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.

Willian popularity over time - boys

Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025

Outside the top 1,000
Peak year (1929)
84
Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
020406080100 188019021925194319611979199720152025 20

Willian popularity over time - girls

18 total births recorded since 1924 (Willian as girls' name)

Unisex variant - 18 births
456789 192419251974 5

Willian by decade

1920s is the heaviest window (597 births, 15% of the file).

1920s was Willian's strongest decade.

597 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 15% of all-time use.

Willian births by decade

Total births in each ten-year window

births

What this shows Peak: 1920s at 597 births (15% of all-time use).

Source U.S. Social Security Administration · Baby Names As of August 2026

How Willian 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 Willian's total volume

Willian vs 15 similarly-sized boys names Scatter plot of 16 data points. 0%5%10%15%20% 050100150200 New & already peakedOld name, single-era peakNew & still diversifyingLong history, steady all along Years in SSA records % of total births in the single peak year -141, 2.5%-116, 2.1%-113, 2.3%-46, 5.1%-54, 4.6%-31, 16.4%-26, 18.5%-144, 1.9%-126, 2.8%-70, 6.5%-32, 12.8%-146, 2%-43, 10.6%-51, 8.3%-55, 4.4%Willian-146, 2.1%Willian
Willian vs 15 similarly-sized boys names

Willian by state

Where Willian concentrates geographically, total births since 1880

Geographically diffuse
Top 8 states by recorded births for the name Willian
Rank State Visual share Births Share of total
#1 California
104 2.6%
#2 New York
97 2.4%
#3 Pennsylvania
75 1.8%
#4 North Carolina
68 1.7%
#5 Michigan
35 0.9%
#6 Tennessee
35 0.9%
#7 Ohio
30 0.7%
#8 Georgia
28 0.7%
California share of Willian's total US births 2.6%
Even split

104 of 4,074 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 16 reporting states.

Willian appears in 16 states. Explore state details →

Frequently Asked Questions

How popular is the name Willian? ▼
Willian has been given to 4,074 babies in the U.S. since 1880, according to SSA data. Its archive ordinal is #2,054 of 45,481 among boys' names (total births, highest first). Among boys in 2025, it is #4,861 of 13,930. 84 babies were born in 1929, its single highest year.
Where does Willian sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Willian ranks #2,054 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #4,861 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. All-time ordinal matches browse popularity (total births DESC); the current ordinal uses the 2025 SSA file. See /methodology#corpus-placement.
When was Willian most popular? ▼
Willian was most popular in the 1920s decade with 597 total births. The single peak year was 1929.
Where is Willian most popular? ▼
The top states for the name Willian are California (104 births), New York (97 births), Pennsylvania (75 births).
How long has the name Willian been used? ▼
Willian has been recorded in Social Security data since 1880, spanning 146 years of data through 2025.
What names are similar to Willian? ▼
Names with a similar sound or spelling include William, Willie, Willard, Wilbur, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for boys.

What to do with Willian's data

  • Willian's decade-level peak was the 1920s (597 total births); usage has since declined to 103 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
  • California records the most Willians (104 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 Willian

Nearby Names Like Willian

Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Willian

William Boy
#9 4,199,696 births
Willie Boy
#1315 450,188 births
Willard Boy
#2718 77,658 births
Wilbur Boy
#3950 56,906 births
Willis Boy
#2539 52,336 births

Compare Willian side by side: Willian vs William Willian vs Willie Willian vs Willard

Or pick any two names to compare →

Related Names

Names with a similar popularity rank to Willian

Sydney #4860
9,404 births · Peak 1916
Elwin #4862
5,176 births · Peak 1923
Aloysius #4859
5,724 births · Peak 1916
Florencio #4863
3,090 births · Peak 1924
Randolph #4858
49,424 births · Peak 1952
Nils #4864
3,083 births · Peak 1970
Wilbert #4857
40,015 births · Peak 1922
Zebulon #4865
2,149 births · Peak 1979

Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span

Two nationwide peer axes for Willian: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.

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 Willian 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.