Boys' name · since 1916
Wise
Since 1916, U.S. Social Security records show 141 babies named Wise, peaking in 2020. See the year-by-year trend, decade totals, and state rankings below, sourced from federal birth data.
- #15,204 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #7,737 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 141
- born since 1916
- 2020s
- peak decade
141 babies have been named Wise since 1916, making it today's #7737 boys' name.
Social Security Administration records show Wise recorded 141 times among boys since 1916, holding rank #7737 nationally today, ahead of 44% of boys, peaking in the 2020s. This profile derives year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1916 to 2025.
- #15,204 of 45,481 all-time among boys
- #7,737 of 13,930 2025 SSA year
- 141 born since 1916
- 2020s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Wise ranks #15,204 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #7,737 of 13,930 among boys' names in 2025. 141 born since 1916, peaking in the 2020s.
- #15,204 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- #7,737 of 13,930
- 2025 SSA year
- 141
- born since 1916
- 2020s
- peak decade
Wise's 141 recorded births place it above 66.56% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.
No state rows cleared SSA’s public reporting threshold for this name.
How Wise compares
141 31st percentile among 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
Wise's all-time total is 62% below the median boys name, and Liam still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Wise | Median boys name (Takari) | #1 boys name (Liam) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 141 | 369 | 358,536 |
| Peak-year births | 16 | 34 | 22,252 |
Wise's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Wise splits its recorded history at 2017: 62% of all births land in the more recent half, 38% in the earlier half, a lean toward present-day use rather than a passing spike. The single quietest year was 1918 (5 births) -- compare that against the 2020 peak of 16 for a sense of just how much the name's popularity has swung.
Wise popularity over time
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1916–2025
- Peak year (2020)
- 16
- Annual births at peak, across 110 years of records
Wise by decade
2020s is the heaviest window (64 births, 45% of the file).
2020s was Wise's strongest decade.
64 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 45% of all-time use.
Wise births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1910s 12
1910s
12 births
- 1920s 11
1920s
11 births
- 1930s 5
1930s
5 births
- 1990s 5
1990s
5 births
- 2010s
2010s
44 births
- 2020s
2020s
64 births
What this shows Peak: 2020s at 64 births (45% of all-time use).
Frequently Asked Questions
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Keep exploring Wise
Nearby Names Like Wise
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Wise
Compare Wise side by side: Wise vs Wisdom Wise vs Wisam Wise vs Wissam
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Wise
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Wise: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~2020)
Similar record span (~109 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, 1916–2025 (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 Wise 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.