Baby Names US
boys' name ★ peaked 1916

Booker

Meaning Booker is both a surname and a given name Gender Boy Rank 2025 #1,160 Trend ↑ Rising 96%

Booker is both a surname and a given name.

Rank 2025
#1,160
among boys · ↑130 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
180
named Booker · +18% vs 2024
How common
1 in 9,489
boys born in 2025
Peak year
1916
294 babies
All-time total
12,235
#1,076 all-time among boys
First recorded
1882
in Social Security records

Booker popularity over time

12,235 babies have been named Booker since 1882, 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
0.250.50.75118801900192019401960198020002020BoysGirls
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 – 16 16 2 – #862
1890s – 79 79 8 +394% #415
1900s – 809 809 81 +924% #190
1910s – 2,051 2,051 205 +154% #177
1920s 5 1,769 1,774 177 -14% #427
1930s – 1,542 1,542 154 -13% #415
1940s – 1,548 1,548 155 0% #462
1950s – 1,187 1,187 119 -23% #561
1960s – 614 614 61 -48% #856
1970s – 425 425 43 -31% #1,024
1980s – 295 295 30 -31% #1,434
1990s – 217 217 22 -26% #2,219
2000s – 188 188 19 -13% #4,115
2010s – 552 552 55 +194% #1,714
2020s (to 2025) – 938 938 156 +183% #1,160

Where Booker 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 200 0.12 outside top 500
2027 220 0.13 outside top 500
2028 237 0.14 outside top 500
2029 253 0.15 outside top 500
2030 268 0.16 outside top 500

Where Booker is most popular

Boys named Booker per 1,000 boys born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.097 per 1,000. Strongest in South Dakota, Arizona, and Kentucky.

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 Booker 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
South Dakota 11 0.591 +506%
Arizona 81 0.495 +408%
Kentucky 41 0.409 +319%
Utah 21 0.220 +126%
Oregon 14 0.184 +89%
Ohio 48 0.181 +86%
Indiana 28 0.175 +79%
Washington 25 0.153 +57%
Wisconsin 17 0.144 +47%
Minnesota 16 0.130 +34%
Idaho 5 0.122 +25%
Michigan 21 0.103 +5%
Kansas 7 0.102 +5%
Tennessee 15 0.083 -15%
Illinois 18 0.070 -28%
Virginia 13 0.069 -30%
North Carolina 16 0.063 -36%
Oklahoma 5 0.057 -42%
Alabama 6 0.055 -44%
Texas 45 0.051 -48%
California 43 0.047 -52%
Georgia 10 0.039 -60%
Colorado 5 0.039 -60%
Missouri 5 0.036 -63%
Florida 8 0.017 -83%
Alaska – – –
Arkansas – – –
Connecticut – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Hawaii – – –
Iowa – – –
Louisiana – – –
Massachusetts – – –
Maryland – – –
Maine – – –
Mississippi – – –
Montana – – –
North Dakota – – –
Nebraska – – –
New Hampshire – – –
New Jersey – – –
New Mexico – – –
Nevada – – –
New York – – –
Pennsylvania – – –
Rhode Island – – –
South Carolina – – –
Vermont – – –
West Virginia – – –
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 Booker

Booker is uncommon for boys in the United States, ranked #1,160 in 2025 with 180 babies given the name. It is currently rising compared with a decade ago.

Since 1882, 12,235 American babies have been named Booker. Its peak came in 1916, when 294 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 1910s.

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

How old are people named Booker?

The median living Booker is about 54 years old; half are between 9 and 74. An estimated 5,000 people named Booker are alive in the United States today.

median 54 020406080100

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

Booker 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 – – 180 #1,160
2024 – – 152 #1,290
2023 – – 179 #1,161
2022 – – 171 #1,186
2021 – – 160 #1,207
2020 – – 96 #1,659
2019 – – 92 #1,714
2018 – – 82 #1,838
2017 – – 84 #1,804
2016 – – 59 #2,257
2015 – – 54 #2,387
2014 – – 47 #2,585
2013 – – 43 #2,719
2012 – – 39 #2,961
2011 – – 22 #4,381
2010 – – 30 #3,542
2009 – – 24 #4,176
2008 – – 21 #4,559
2007 – – 21 #4,517
2006 – – 23 #4,115
2005 – – 19 #4,492
2004 – – 14 #5,528
2003 – – 18 #4,441
2002 – – 13 #5,432
2001 – – 17 #4,504
2000 – – 18 #4,226
1995 – – 18 #3,568
1990 – – 32 #2,219
1985 – – 32 #1,837
1980 – – 44 #1,434
1975 – – 39 #1,412
1970 – – 63 #1,024
1965 – – 65 #921
1960 – – 65 #941
1955 – – 125 #656
1950 – – 145 #561
1945 – – 135 #517
1940 – – 156 #462
1935 – – 130 #502
1930 – – 201 #415
1925 5 #5,071 165 #468
1920 – – 196 #427
1915 – – 272 #312
1910 – – 159 #177
1905 – – 93 #191
1900 – – 46 #307
1895 – – 5 #1,098
1890 – – 5 #1,021
1885 – – – –
1880 – – – –

Famous people named Booker

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

  1. 1 Booker T. Washington Booker T. Washington American educator, author, orator and adviser (1856–1915) 19th century
  2. 2 Booker T Booker T American professional wrestler (born 1965) Contemporary
  3. 3 Booker Ervin Booker Ervin American saxophonist (1930–1970) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Booker?

The median living Booker is about 54 years old. Half of all living Bookers are between 9 and 74 years old.

How many people named Booker are alive today?

An estimated 5,000 people named Booker are alive in the United States, based on 12,235 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Booker mean?

Booker is both a surname and a given name.

How popular is the name Booker in 2025?

Booker ranked #1,160 among boys' names in the United States in 2025, with 180 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Booker?

12,235 babies have been named Booker in the United States since 1882, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Booker most popular?

Booker peaked in 1916, when 294 newborns received the name.

Is Booker a boy or girl name?

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

Is the name Booker rising or falling?

Booker is on the rise, noticeably more popular now than a decade ago.

Will Booker become more popular?

Booker is trending upward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 268 boys named Booker in 2030, which would rank outside the top 500. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Booker?

Well-known people named Booker include Booker T. Washington (writer), Booker T (wrestler), Booker Ervin (musician).

Names like Booker

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

Compare Booker with similar names → More names starting with B →