boys' name ★ peaked 1984

Adam

Meaning earth, man, soil, light brown Gender Boy Rank 2025 #101 Trend ↓ Falling 14%

From Middle English Adam, from Old English Adam, from Latin Adam, Adamus, from Ancient Greek Ἀδάμ (Adám), Ἄδαμος (Ádamos), from Biblical Hebrew אָדָם (adam, “earth, man…

Rank 2025
#101
among boys · ↓1 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
3,511
named Adam
How common
1 in 488
boys born in 2025
Peak year
1984
24,081 babies
All-time total
582,453
#58 all-time among boys
First recorded
1880
in Social Security records

Adam popularity over time

582,453 babies have been named Adam since 1880, according to official Social Security records. Switch measure to see births per year or the yearly rank.

Measure
Births per 1,000 babies of that sex, comparable across eras
3.757.511.251518801900192019401960198020002020BoysGirls
BoysGirls

By decade. Change compares yearly averages, so the current partial decade is on equal footing. Best rank is the name's best yearly rank within the decade.

Decade Girls Boys Total Per year Change Best rank
1880s – 1,020 1,020 102 – #108
1890s – 863 863 86 -15% #149
1900s – 1,021 1,021 102 +18% #169
1910s 5 4,480 4,485 449 +339% #170
1920s 18 4,455 4,473 447 0% #223
1930s – 2,409 2,409 241 -46% #313
1940s – 2,436 2,436 244 +1% #379
1950s 6 3,732 3,738 374 +53% #322
1960s 73 22,925 22,998 2,300 +515% #114
1970s 476 91,739 92,215 9,222 +301% #23
1980s 1,016 195,086 196,102 19,610 +113% #18
1990s 237 106,909 107,146 10,715 -45% #32
2000s 148 71,028 71,176 7,118 -34% #45
2010s 66 50,704 50,770 5,077 -29% #73
2020s (to 2025) 30 21,571 21,601 3,600 -29% #97

Where Adam is heading

A five-year projection from the recent trend in births per 1,000 boys (damped so it flattens over time), converted to babies at today's birth totals. The implied rank places that projection in the 2025 field. A projection, not a promise: real trends bend.

Year Projected babies Per 1,000 boys Implied rank
2026 3,412 2.00 #105
2027 3,338 1.95 #105
2028 3,276 1.92 #107
2029 3,224 1.89 #109
2030 3,181 1.86 #111

Where Adam is most popular

Boys named Adam per 1,000 boys born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 2.06 per 1,000. Strongest in District of Columbia, Michigan, and New York.

Vs national average
well below below near national above well above no data

All 50 states and DC, sorted by rate. Counts are boys named Adam born 2021–2025; the per-1,000 rate makes states of different sizes comparable, and the last column shows each state against the national average.

State Boys 2021–2025 Per 1,000 vs national
District of Columbia 71 4.81 +134%
Michigan 828 4.04 +96%
New York 1,639 3.79 +84%
Illinois 929 3.63 +76%
New Jersey 726 3.61 +75%
Virginia 587 3.09 +50%
California 2,665 2.92 +42%
Rhode Island 47 2.88 +40%
Massachusetts 387 2.81 +37%
Florida 1,305 2.76 +34%
Alaska 31 2.60 +26%
Pennsylvania 691 2.60 +26%
Delaware 39 2.57 +25%
Connecticut 169 2.50 +21%
Ohio 654 2.47 +20%
Nevada 140 2.46 +19%
Minnesota 287 2.34 +14%
Washington 379 2.32 +12%
Maine 44 2.27 +10%
New Mexico 73 2.22 +8%
Montana 38 2.15 +5%
Arizona 341 2.08 ≈ national
Maryland 245 2.05 ≈ national
Texas 1,797 2.04 ≈ national
North Dakota 34 1.99 ≈ national
Vermont 12 1.91 -7%
Kansas 130 1.90 -8%
Oregon 138 1.82 -12%
Nebraska 78 1.79 -13%
New Hampshire 39 1.76 -15%
North Carolina 423 1.66 -20%
Colorado 212 1.64 -20%
Tennessee 292 1.62 -21%
Missouri 224 1.62 -22%
Indiana 256 1.60 -22%
South Carolina 164 1.59 -23%
Louisiana 161 1.57 -24%
Kentucky 156 1.55 -25%
Idaho 63 1.54 -25%
Georgia 375 1.48 -28%
Wisconsin 175 1.48 -28%
Utah 139 1.46 -29%
Arkansas 90 1.42 -31%
Oklahoma 124 1.40 -32%
Mississippi 73 1.28 -38%
Iowa 83 1.20 -42%
Hawaii 18 1.16 -44%
South Dakota 21 1.13 -45%
West Virginia 36 1.10 -46%
Alabama 114 1.04 -49%
Wyoming – – –

State counts come from the Social Security Administration's state files, which omit any state-year with fewer than five babies of a name, so small states can undercount slightly.

The story of Adam

Adam is moderately common for boys in the United States, ranked #101 in 2025 with 3,501 babies given the name. It is currently declining compared with a decade ago.

Since 1880, 582,453 American babies have been named Adam. Its peak came in 1984, when 24,081 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 1980s.

The chart above shows the full history: the popularity view (births per 1,000 babies) is the honest comparison across generations, since total US births have changed enormously since 1880. Switch to the rank view to see where Adam stood among all boys' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Adam?

The median living Adam is about 37 years old; half are between 25 and 44. An estimated 542 thousand people named Adam are alive in the United States today.

median 37 020406080100

Estimated from births per year and Social Security period life tables; an approximation of the living age distribution, by age in years.

Adam year by year

Every year since 2001, and five-year steps back to 1880. Rank is within each sex.

Year Girls Girls rank Boys Boys rank
2025 10 #9,464 3,501 #101
2024 8 #11,133 3,507 #100
2023 – – 3,487 #103
2022 – – 3,638 #99
2021 5 #15,294 3,657 #104
2020 7 #12,164 3,781 #97
2019 7 #12,465 4,188 #91
2018 7 #12,485 4,711 #78
2017 8 #11,632 4,933 #77
2016 6 #14,353 5,224 #75
2015 6 #14,515 5,404 #73
2014 7 #13,090 5,344 #79
2013 5 #16,584 5,251 #82
2012 – – 5,323 #82
2011 11 #9,726 5,215 #81
2010 9 #11,261 5,111 #80
2009 7 #13,727 5,676 #74
2008 13 #8,969 6,098 #72
2007 7 #13,944 6,790 #65
2006 12 #9,295 6,806 #64
2005 14 #7,894 6,846 #64
2004 37 #3,821 7,474 #58
2003 21 #5,587 7,690 #58
2002 8 #11,115 7,754 #55
2001 13 #7,729 7,758 #51
2000 16 #6,488 8,136 #45
1995 13 #6,644 10,485 #38
1990 35 #3,156 14,713 #32
1985 117 #1,201 20,165 #22
1980 96 #1,318 18,868 #22
1975 44 #1,986 8,646 #38
1970 21 #3,110 4,313 #72
1965 8 #4,832 2,561 #125
1960 – – 1,018 #249
1955 – – 354 #382
1950 – – 308 #382
1945 – – 210 #415
1940 – – 227 #379
1935 – – 237 #356
1930 – – 273 #337
1925 6 #4,426 452 #268
1920 – – 579 #223
1915 – – 574 #194
1910 – – 154 #182
1905 – – 101 #183
1900 – – 111 #187
1895 – – 78 #190
1890 – – 74 #180
1885 – – 96 #141
1880 – – 104 #123

Famous people named Adam

The most globally famous bearers of the name, ranked by fame across Wikipedia editions (Pantheon project, MIT).

  1. 1 Adam Sandler Adam Sandler American actor and comedian (born 1966) Contemporary
  2. 2 Adam West Adam West American actor (1928–2017) Contemporary
  3. 3 Adam Smith Adam Smith Scottish economist and philosopher (1723–1790) 18th century
  4. 4 Adam Rainer Adam Rainer Austrian sufferer from dwarfism and gigantism (1899–1950) 19th century
  5. 5 Adam Weishaupt Adam Weishaupt German philosopher and founder of the Bavarian Illuminati (1748–1830) 18th century
  6. 6 Adam Mickiewicz Adam Mickiewicz PoIish writer and activist (1798–1855) 18th century
  7. 7 Adam Jerzy Czartoryski Adam Jerzy Czartoryski Polish noble and statesman (1770–1861) 18th century
  8. 8 Adam of Bremen Adam of Bremen 11th-century German historian and chronicler
  9. 9 Adam Malik Adam Malik Vice President of Indonesia from 1978 to 1983 1917–1984 · Contemporary
  10. 10 Adam Opel Adam Opel Founder of Opel and manufacturer of bicycles and sewing machines 1837–1895 · 19th century
  11. 11 Adam Stefan Sapieha Adam Stefan Sapieha Polish Roman Catholic archbishop (1867–1951) 19th century
  12. 12 Adam Czerniaków Adam Czerniaków Polish politician (1880–1942) 19th century
  13. 13 Adam Albert von Neipperg Adam Albert von Neipperg Austrian marshall and nobleman (1775–1829) 18th century
  14. 14 Adam Sedgwick Adam Sedgwick British geologist (1785–1873) 18th century
  15. 15 Adam Ferguson Adam Ferguson Scottish philosopher and historian (1723–1816) 18th century
  16. 16 Adam Johann von Krusenstern Adam Johann von Krusenstern Russian admiral and explorer (1770–1846) 18th century
  17. 17 Adam de la Halle Adam de la Halle French trouvère (1245–50 – 1285–88/after 1306) Medieval
  18. 18 Adam Ludwig Lewenhaupt Adam Ludwig Lewenhaupt Swedish general (1659–1719) 17th century
  19. 19 Adam Kazimierz Czartoryski Adam Kazimierz Czartoryski Polish noble, writer, literary critic (1734–1823) 18th century
  20. 20 Adam Müller Adam Müller German literary critic, political economist, and theorist of the state 1779–1829 · 18th century

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

Quick answers about Adam, drawn from the same Social Security data as the charts above.

How old is the average Adam?

The median living Adam is about 37 years old. Half of all living Adams are between 25 and 44 years old.

How many people named Adam are alive today?

An estimated 542 thousand people named Adam are alive in the United States, based on 582,453 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Adam mean?

From Middle English Adam, from Old English Adam, from Latin Adam, Adamus, from Ancient Greek Ἀδάμ (Adám), Ἄδαμος (Ádamos), from Biblical Hebrew אָדָם (adam, “earth, man, soil, light brown”), from אדמה (adamah, “red earth,…

How popular is the name Adam in 2025?

Adam ranked #101 among boys' names in the United States in 2025, with 3,501 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Adam?

582,453 babies have been named Adam in the United States since 1880, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Adam most popular?

Adam peaked in 1984, when 24,081 newborns received the name.

Is Adam a boy or girl name?

Adam is overwhelmingly a boy's name: 100% of babies with the name.

Is the name Adam rising or falling?

Adam is declining, less popular now than a decade ago.

Will Adam become more popular?

Adam is trending downward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 3,181 boys named Adam in 2030, which would rank around #111. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Adam?

Well-known people named Adam include Adam Sandler (comedian), Adam West (actor), Adam Smith (economist).

Names like Adam

Names that sound and feel close to Adam: shared sounds, similar era, similar popularity. Each links to its full history.

Compare Adam with similar names → More names starting with A →