Meaning not yet researched.
Brian: US boys given the name each year, 1880 to 2025, from Social Security card applications. 979 in 2025. Its best rank was #8 in 1977.
US births per year · SSA card applications
Peaked at #8 in 1977; #339 in 2025. Every baby recorded as Brian in 2025 was a boy.
Baby name · US data 1880–2025
#339 for US boys in 2025. Its best year was 1977, at #8.
Hover, tap or use the arrow keys for any year. Years with fewer than five babies of a sex are not published by SSA and show as zero.
Brian: US boys given the name each year from 1880 to 2025. 979 boys in 2025. Peak: #8 in 1977 · most boys in one year: 36,306 (1972).
In 2025, 979 US boys were named Brian, making it the 339th most common boys’ name of the year, down 37 places from #302 in 2024. That is 137 fewer than the 1,116 boys named Brian in 2024. Its best rank for boys was #8, reached in 1977. The most boys given the name in a single year was 36,306, in 1972. For comparison, it was #189 in 2015 and #79 in 1950.
Social Security card records list Brian in 116 years of the 146 from 1880 to 2025, starting in 1909 with 5 babies. In all, 1,178,298 US babies have been given the name, 0.4% of them girls and 99.6% boys. Its busiest decade was the 1970s, with 324,243 babies named Brian.
Over the 10 years from 2016 to 2025, 13,645 US boys were named Brian; the busiest of those years was 2016, with 1,984. In 2025 that was about 1 in 1,745 of the boys in SSA’s list for the year.
Among the states, Brian ranked highest in Delaware in 2025, at #170 for boys there. It was not in the top 100 of any state. Related spellings in the SSA files include Bryan (391,306 babies since 1880), Brayan (16,558 babies since 1880), Brien (3,593 babies since 1880) and Brion (2,896 babies since 1880). Rarer spellings such as Bren, Brieann and Brinn are summarised on this page. The open nickname list we use links it to Bryan and Bryant.
Meaning not yet researched.
We publish a meaning only with a cited source and a confidence label, and never generate one. Meanings are being researched for the most common names first.
Rare spellings summarised here: Bren (736), Brieann (718), Brinn (620), Bryann (482), Brin (450), Bryen (432), Briane (351), Bri (315), Bran (232), Breion (198), Braian (185), Brenn (154), and more.
Numbers are all-time US births. Links come from Wikidata’s “said to be the same as” (P460, CC0) and our spelling rule: at most two letters different, with the same sound pattern.
US boys. Rank within each state. SSA leaves out states where fewer than five boys got the name, so 12 are not listed.
| State | Births 2025 | Rank 2025 | Rank 2015 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Delaware | 6 | #170 | #117 |
| District of Columbia | 5 | #171 | #190 |
| North Dakota | 6 | #197 | — |
| Florida | 91 | #231 | #158 |
| Massachusetts | 25 | #240 | #107 |
| New Jersey | 37 | #254 | #145 |
| Kentucky | 21 | #255 | #235 |
| Illinois | 39 | #280 | #146 |
| Missouri | 24 | #283 | #251 |
| Maryland | 19 | #287 | #110 |
| Ohio | 42 | #289 | #207 |
| Pennsylvania | 39 | #293 | #172 |
| Virginia | 28 | #297 | #157 |
| Nevada | 10 | #301 | #183 |
| West Virginia | 6 | #306 | #267 |
| California | 111 | #325 | #151 |
| South Carolina | 16 | #329 | #154 |
| Connecticut | 9 | #329 | #147 |
| Washington | 22 | #339 | #202 |
| Colorado | 18 | #347 | #300 |
| Indiana | 21 | #353 | #228 |
| Louisiana | 14 | #354 | #190 |
| New York | 49 | #360 | #126 |
| Texas | 100 | #368 | #212 |
| Michigan | 23 | #378 | #185 |
| Nebraska | 6 | #382 | — |
| North Carolina | 27 | #407 | #183 |
| Georgia | 28 | #408 | #151 |
| Utah | 11 | #410 | #321 |
| Alabama | 12 | #423 | #219 |
| Idaho | 5 | #444 | — |
| Oklahoma | 9 | #471 | #244 |
| Mississippi | 6 | #475 | #201 |
| Minnesota | 11 | #479 | #340 |
| Tennessee | 16 | #481 | #196 |
| Oregon | 7 | #482 | #210 |
| Arizona | 14 | #493 | #253 |
| Iowa | 6 | #505 | #513 |
| Wisconsin | 9 | #527 | #256 |
Births and national rank for each year SSA lists the name, newest first.
| Year | Girls | Girls rank | Boys | Boys rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | — | — | 979 | #339 |
| 2024 | — | — | 1,116 | #302 |
| 2023 | — | — | 1,049 | #317 |
| 2022 | — | — | 1,180 | #289 |
| 2021 | — | — | 1,188 | #288 |
| 2020 | — | — | 1,261 | #271 |
| 2019 | — | — | 1,479 | #247 |
| 2018 | — | — | 1,631 | #235 |
| 2017 | — | — | 1,778 | #216 |
| 2016 | — | — | 1,984 | #204 |
| 2015 | 5 | #16,908 | 2,218 | #189 |
| 2014 | — | — | 2,536 | #168 |
| 2013 | 5 | #16,996 | 2,645 | #150 |
| 2012 | 11 | #9,833 | 2,820 | #141 |
| 2011 | 5 | #17,217 | 3,250 | #122 |
| 2010 | 8 | #12,481 | 3,766 | #101 |
| 2009 | 6 | #15,578 | 4,658 | #94 |
| 2008 | 9 | #11,760 | 5,263 | #87 |
| 2007 | 23 | #5,930 | 6,075 | #81 |
| 2006 | 8 | #12,617 | 6,511 | #72 |
| 2005 | 24 | #5,296 | 6,920 | #63 |
| 2004 | 42 | #3,503 | 7,333 | #59 |
| 2003 | 20 | #5,849 | 7,672 | #59 |
| 2002 | 19 | #5,935 | 8,082 | #51 |
| 2001 | 16 | #6,670 | 8,303 | #46 |
| 2000 | 30 | #4,092 | 8,958 | #43 |
| 1999 | 20 | #5,256 | 8,808 | #43 |
| 1998 | 25 | #4,385 | 9,146 | #41 |
| 1997 | 24 | #4,393 | 9,739 | #37 |
| 1996 | 29 | #3,732 | 10,476 | #36 |
| 1995 | 53 | #2,423 | 10,991 | #36 |
| 1994 | 36 | #3,174 | 11,648 | #37 |
| 1993 | 44 | #2,727 | 12,544 | #34 |
| 1992 | 42 | #2,832 | 14,107 | #31 |
| 1991 | 48 | #2,556 | 14,915 | #30 |
| 1990 | 51 | #2,405 | 16,935 | #27 |
| 1989 | 70 | #1,874 | 18,106 | #24 |
| 1988 | 126 | #1,197 | 19,532 | #22 |
| 1987 | 126 | #1,162 | 20,362 | #20 |
| 1986 | 142 | #1,058 | 21,027 | #20 |
| 1985 | 137 | #1,072 | 23,069 | #18 |
| 1984 | 147 | #979 | 24,720 | #17 |
| 1983 | 156 | #947 | 26,050 | #14 |
| 1982 | 147 | #1,005 | 25,829 | #14 |
| 1981 | 144 | #1,009 | 26,583 | #14 |
| 1980 | 173 | #885 | 28,715 | #12 |
| 1979 | 158 | #931 | 28,659 | #10 |
| 1978 | 171 | #858 | 29,432 | #9 |
| 1977 | 181 | #829 | 32,492 | #8 |
| 1976 | 155 | #870 | 30,517 | #8 |
| 1975 | 151 | #880 | 30,578 | #8 |
| 1974 | 138 | #912 | 34,449 | #8 |
| 1973 | 160 | #821 | 35,686 | #8 |
| 1972 | 171 | #796 | 36,306 | #8 |
| 1971 | 150 | #886 | 32,624 | #9 |
| 1970 | 148 | #891 | 31,917 | #8 |
| 1969 | 130 | #933 | 31,669 | #9 |
| 1968 | 105 | #1,013 | 29,922 | #10 |
| 1967 | 104 | #1,002 | 28,646 | #10 |
| 1966 | 89 | #1,119 | 27,253 | #14 |
| 1965 | 71 | #1,274 | 24,552 | #19 |
| 1964 | 63 | #1,421 | 24,167 | #20 |
| 1963 | 55 | #1,509 | 24,133 | #20 |
| 1962 | 60 | #1,429 | 23,221 | #20 |
| 1961 | 40 | #1,812 | 22,566 | #20 |
| 1960 | 52 | #1,543 | 22,000 | #20 |
| 1959 | 39 | #1,766 | 20,737 | #22 |
| 1958 | 38 | #1,764 | 19,279 | #24 |
| 1957 | 26 | #2,173 | 17,519 | #26 |
| 1956 | 19 | #2,633 | 14,666 | #32 |
| 1955 | 23 | #2,283 | 10,109 | #40 |
| 1954 | 12 | #3,343 | 8,078 | #48 |
| 1953 | 10 | #3,718 | 6,665 | #53 |
| 1952 | 13 | #3,053 | 5,741 | #64 |
| 1951 | 8 | #4,053 | 5,101 | #75 |
| 1950 | 5 | #5,380 | 4,441 | #79 |
| 1949 | 6 | #4,733 | 3,854 | #86 |
| 1948 | 6 | #4,724 | 3,358 | #95 |
| 1947 | 12 | #3,075 | 3,450 | #95 |
| 1946 | 8 | #3,698 | 2,585 | #103 |
| 1945 | 5 | #4,625 | 1,989 | #113 |
| 1944 | — | — | 1,954 | #116 |
| 1943 | 10 | #3,062 | 1,950 | #120 |
| 1942 | — | — | 1,523 | #139 |
| 1941 | — | — | 1,123 | #153 |
| 1940 | — | — | 1,007 | #163 |
| 1939 | — | — | 808 | #176 |
| 1938 | — | — | 609 | #204 |
| 1937 | — | — | 519 | #228 |
| 1936 | — | — | 344 | #289 |
| 1935 | — | — | 254 | #347 |
| 1934 | — | — | 187 | #402 |
| 1933 | — | — | 150 | #450 |
| 1932 | — | — | 119 | #538 |
| 1931 | — | — | 93 | #617 |
| 1930 | — | — | 90 | #646 |
| 1929 | — | — | 112 | #558 |
| 1928 | — | — | 104 | #603 |
| 1927 | — | — | 75 | #755 |
| 1926 | — | — | 47 | #1,010 |
| 1925 | — | — | 59 | #872 |
| 1924 | — | — | 38 | #1,171 |
| 1923 | — | — | 35 | #1,214 |
| 1922 | — | — | 31 | #1,314 |
| 1921 | — | — | 34 | #1,253 |
| 1920 | — | — | 31 | #1,301 |
| 1919 | — | — | 14 | #2,162 |
| 1918 | — | — | 12 | #2,415 |
| 1917 | — | — | 14 | #2,104 |
| 1916 | — | — | 17 | #1,780 |
| 1915 | — | — | 21 | #1,510 |
| 1914 | — | — | 11 | #1,988 |
| 1913 | — | — | 14 | #1,452 |
| 1912 | — | — | 6 | #2,312 |
| 1911 | — | — | 7 | #1,404 |
| 1909 | — | — | 5 | #1,480 |
About the data: counts are Social Security card applications for US births, for names given to at least five babies of a sex in a year (SSA, names.zip, public domain). Ranks follow SSA’s own order: most births first, ties alphabetical. Files retrieved 2026-10-05 (checksum on our sources page).