Unisex name β˜… peaked 2008

Adrian

Meaning from the Roman harbor Hadria Gender Unisex Β· 5% girls Rank 2025 #74 Trend ↓ Falling 16%

From Latin Hadrianus (β€œfrom the Roman harbor Hadria”) a place name ultimately from Etruscan πŒ‡πŒ€πŒ•πŒ“πŒ‰πŒ€ (hatria).

Rank 2025
#74
among boys Β· ↓2 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
4,505
named Adrian Β· -4% vs 2024
How common
1 in 383
boys born in 2025
Peak year
2008
8,100 babies
All-time total
287,982
#137 all-time among boys
First recorded
1880
in Social Security records

Adrian popularity over time

287,982 babies have been named Adrian 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
1.252.53.75518801900192019401960198020002020BoysGirls
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 – 148 148 15 – #403
1890s – 196 196 20 +32% #322
1900s – 312 312 31 +59% #334
1910s 111 1,901 2,012 201 +545% #309
1920s 134 2,741 2,875 288 +43% #310
1930s 216 2,176 2,392 239 -17% #353
1940s 513 2,639 3,152 315 +32% #362
1950s 985 4,057 5,042 504 +60% #345
1960s 1,581 7,672 9,253 925 +84% #223
1970s 2,435 18,912 21,347 2,135 +131% #111
1980s 3,747 28,140 31,887 3,189 +49% #93
1990s 2,674 41,982 44,656 4,466 +40% #71
2000s 1,790 66,122 67,912 6,791 +52% #56
2010s 1,161 65,986 67,147 6,715 -1% #56
2020s (toΒ 2025) 370 29,281 29,651 4,942 -26% #58

Where Adrian 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 4,343 2.54 #77
2027 4,243 2.48 #78
2028 4,160 2.44 #79
2029 4,091 2.40 #80
2030 4,033 2.36 #81

Where Adrian is most popular

Boys named Adrian per 1,000 boys born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 2.77 per 1,000. Strongest in Rhode Island, New Mexico, and District of Columbia.

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 Adrian 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
Rhode Island 98 6.01 +117%
New Mexico 185 5.61 +102%
District of Columbia 81 5.49 +98%
Nevada 294 5.16 +86%
California 4,712 5.15 +86%
Arizona 800 4.89 +76%
Texas 3,773 4.28 +54%
Delaware 61 4.02 +45%
Wyoming 23 3.98 +43%
Alaska 47 3.95 +42%
Florida 1,689 3.57 +29%
Connecticut 236 3.49 +26%
Illinois 865 3.38 +22%
New Jersey 674 3.35 +21%
Colorado 422 3.27 +18%
Washington 521 3.18 +15%
Oregon 240 3.16 +14%
Maryland 369 3.09 +12%
New York 1,284 2.97 +7%
Virginia 556 2.93 +6%
Massachusetts 402 2.92 +5%
Nebraska 125 2.87 β‰ˆ national
Georgia 711 2.81 β‰ˆ national
Oklahoma 246 2.78 β‰ˆ national
North Carolina 698 2.73 β‰ˆ national
Kansas 186 2.71 β‰ˆ national
Arkansas 167 2.64 -5%
South Dakota 47 2.53 -9%
Iowa 167 2.42 -13%
Utah 228 2.39 -14%
Indiana 374 2.33 -16%
Wisconsin 261 2.20 -21%
Alabama 239 2.19 -21%
Pennsylvania 579 2.18 -21%
Idaho 89 2.17 -22%
South Carolina 203 1.96 -29%
Kentucky 197 1.96 -29%
North Dakota 33 1.93 -30%
Tennessee 338 1.87 -33%
Montana 33 1.87 -33%
Louisiana 188 1.84 -34%
Minnesota 222 1.81 -35%
Missouri 250 1.80 -35%
Michigan 367 1.79 -35%
Mississippi 95 1.67 -40%
Maine 32 1.65 -41%
Ohio 420 1.58 -43%
New Hampshire 31 1.40 -50%
West Virginia 45 1.38 -50%
Hawaii 17 1.09 -61%
Vermont 5 0.796 -71%

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 Adrian

Adrian is a top-100 name for boys in the United States, ranked #74 in 2025 with 4,464 babies given the name. It is currently declining compared with a decade ago.

Since 1880, 287,982 American babies have been named Adrian, about 95% boys and 5% girls, making it a genuinely unisex name. Its peak came in 2008, when 8,100 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 2000s.

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 Adrian stood among all boys' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Adrian?

The median living Adrian is about 21 years old; half are between 12 and 35. An estimated 271 thousand people named Adrian are alive in the United States today.

median 21 020406080100

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

Adrian 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 41 #3,645 4,464 #74
2024 58 #2,857 4,642 #72
2023 70 #2,518 4,666 #67
2022 62 #2,756 5,044 #63
2021 75 #2,384 5,144 #61
2020 64 #2,632 5,321 #58
2019 84 #2,194 5,786 #56
2018 79 #2,302 5,817 #62
2017 114 #1,815 6,236 #58
2016 108 #1,884 6,337 #60
2015 84 #2,236 6,540 #58
2014 106 #1,893 6,706 #59
2013 126 #1,675 6,854 #60
2012 133 #1,624 6,952 #61
2011 164 #1,392 7,349 #56
2010 163 #1,402 7,409 #56
2009 160 #1,450 7,633 #59
2008 162 #1,453 7,938 #56
2007 181 #1,340 7,742 #61
2006 179 #1,307 7,383 #63
2005 169 #1,307 6,727 #65
2004 170 #1,264 6,140 #72
2003 171 #1,233 6,110 #68
2002 197 #1,077 5,684 #73
2001 189 #1,117 5,424 #75
2000 212 #999 5,341 #78
1995 229 #853 3,911 #96
1990 376 #602 4,000 #94
1985 388 #517 3,132 #93
1980 346 #544 2,393 #115
1975 212 #699 1,953 #133
1970 214 #717 1,295 #200
1965 116 #951 772 #268
1960 106 #1,043 555 #327
1955 90 #1,062 431 #348
1950 102 #876 298 #390
1945 42 #1,232 231 #395
1940 29 #1,404 237 #370
1935 23 #1,550 211 #372
1930 16 #2,112 205 #410
1925 17 #2,193 267 #363
1920 8 #3,601 284 #348
1915 11 #2,528 231 #351
1910 – – 42 #415
1905 – – 33 #360
1900 – – 27 #430
1895 – – 18 #477
1890 – – 17 #434
1885 – – 12 #547
1880 – – 18 #403

Famous people named Adrian

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

  1. 1 Adrian Carton de Wiart Adrian Carton de Wiart British Army officer (1880–1963) 19th century
  2. 2 Adrian Grenier Adrian Grenier American actor (born 1976) Contemporary
  3. 3 Adrian Pasdar Adrian Pasdar American actor (born 1965) Contemporary
  4. 4 Adrian Newey Adrian Newey British engineer, aerodynamicist and motorsport executive (born 1958) Contemporary
  5. 5 Adrian Belew Adrian Belew American musician, songwriter, and record producer (born 1949) Contemporary
  6. 6 Adrian Scarborough British actor b. 1968 Β· Contemporary
  7. 7 Adrian Mannarino Adrian Mannarino French tennis player (born 1988) Contemporary
  8. 8 Adrian Paul Adrian Paul English actor (born 1959) Contemporary
  9. 9 Adrian Lyne English film director (born 1941) Contemporary
  10. 10 Adrian Rawlins Adrian Rawlins British actor (born 1958) Contemporary
  11. 11 Adrian Dantley Adrian Dantley American basketball player (born 1955) b. 1956 Β· Contemporary
  12. 12 Adrian Smith Adrian Smith American architect (born 1944) Contemporary
  13. 13 Adrian Sutil Adrian Sutil German racing driver (born 1983) Contemporary
  14. 14 Adrian Lamo Adrian Lamo American hacker and threat analyst (1981–2018) Contemporary
  15. 15 Adrian Frutiger Adrian Frutiger Swiss typeface designer (1928–2015) Contemporary
  16. 16 Adrian Vandenberg Adrian Vandenberg Dutch guitarist (born 1954) Contemporary
  17. 17 Adrian Goldsworthy Historian, United Kingdom b. 1969 Β· Contemporary
  18. 18 Adrian Ilie Adrian Ilie Romanian footballer b. 1974 Β· Contemporary
  19. 19 Adrian Biddle English cinematographer (1952–2005) Contemporary
  20. 20 Adrian Năstase Adrian Năstase Romanian politician b. 1950 · Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Adrian?

The median living Adrian is about 21 years old. Half of all living Adrians are between 12 and 35 years old.

How many people named Adrian are alive today?

An estimated 271 thousand people named Adrian are alive in the United States, based on 287,982 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Adrian mean?

From Latin Hadrianus (β€œfrom the Roman harbor Hadria”) a place name ultimately from Etruscan πŒ‡πŒ€πŒ•πŒ“πŒ‰πŒ€ (hatria).

How popular is the name Adrian in 2025?

Adrian ranked #74 among boys' names in the United States in 2025, with 4,464 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Adrian?

287,982 babies have been named Adrian in the United States since 1880, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Adrian most popular?

Adrian peaked in 2008, when 8,100 newborns received the name.

Is Adrian a boy or girl name?

Adrian is used for both: about 5% of babies named Adrian have been girls and 95% boys.

Is the name Adrian rising or falling?

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

Will Adrian become more popular?

Adrian is trending downward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 4,033 boys named Adrian in 2030, which would rank around #81. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Adrian?

Well-known people named Adrian include Adrian Carton de Wiart (military personnel), Adrian Grenier (actor), Adrian Pasdar (actor).

Names like Adrian

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

Compare Adrian with similar names β†’ More names starting with A β†’