boys' name ★ peaked 2005

Edgar

Meaning rich Gender Boy Rank 2025 #486 Trend ↓ Falling 17%

From Old English Ēadgār, the name of early English kings, from Old English ēad (“rich”) + gār (“spear”).

Rank 2025
#486
among boys · ↓28 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
617
named Edgar · -10% vs 2024
How common
1 in 2,768
boys born in 2025
Peak year
2005
2,459 babies
All-time total
157,919
#219 all-time among boys
First recorded
1880
in Social Security records

Edgar popularity over time

157,919 babies have been named Edgar 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
123418801900192019401960198020002020BoysGirls
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 5 3,006 3,011 301 – #51
1890s 10 2,982 2,992 299 -1% #61
1900s – 3,154 3,154 315 +5% #71
1910s 77 14,080 14,157 1,416 +349% #80
1920s 122 18,037 18,159 1,816 +28% #89
1930s 77 11,860 11,937 1,194 -34% #119
1940s 6 9,804 9,810 981 -18% #164
1950s 5 8,634 8,639 864 -12% #209
1960s 46 6,485 6,531 653 -24% #292
1970s 60 6,805 6,865 687 +5% #262
1980s 122 11,608 11,730 1,173 +71% #147
1990s 141 22,215 22,356 2,236 +91% #142
2000s 29 22,586 22,615 2,262 +1% #161
2010s 5 11,623 11,628 1,163 -49% #218
2020s (to 2025) – 4,335 4,335 723 -38% #391

Where Edgar 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 597 0.35 outside top 500
2027 580 0.34 outside top 500
2028 566 0.33 outside top 500
2029 554 0.32 outside top 500
2030 545 0.32 outside top 500

Where Edgar is most popular

Boys named Edgar per 1,000 boys born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.411 per 1,000. Strongest in New Mexico, Texas, and Arizona.

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 Edgar 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
New Mexico 36 1.09 +166%
Texas 828 0.940 +129%
Arizona 152 0.929 +126%
California 790 0.864 +110%
Kansas 44 0.641 +56%
Nebraska 27 0.621 +51%
Washington 100 0.611 +49%
Oklahoma 49 0.554 +35%
Colorado 70 0.542 +32%
Oregon 40 0.527 +28%
Maryland 52 0.436 +6%
Illinois 104 0.407 ≈ national
Virginia 72 0.379 -8%
Nevada 21 0.368 -10%
Georgia 89 0.351 -14%
Tennessee 59 0.327 -20%
Alabama 35 0.320 -22%
Massachusetts 44 0.320 -22%
South Carolina 33 0.319 -22%
Florida 141 0.298 -27%
North Carolina 73 0.286 -30%
Missouri 38 0.274 -33%
Utah 26 0.272 -34%
Idaho 11 0.269 -35%
Wisconsin 31 0.262 -36%
Indiana 40 0.249 -39%
Minnesota 30 0.245 -40%
New York 105 0.243 -41%
New Jersey 48 0.238 -42%
Arkansas 13 0.205 -50%
Connecticut 13 0.192 -53%
Michigan 39 0.190 -54%
Ohio 47 0.177 -57%
Pennsylvania 43 0.162 -61%
Iowa 10 0.145 -65%
Louisiana 12 0.117 -71%
Kentucky 11 0.110 -73%
Mississippi 5 0.088 -79%
Alaska – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Hawaii – – –
Maine – – –
Montana – – –
North Dakota – – –
New Hampshire – – –
Rhode Island – – –
South Dakota – – –
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 Edgar

Edgar is moderately common for boys in the United States, ranked #486 in 2025 with 617 babies given the name. It is currently declining compared with a decade ago.

Since 1880, 157,919 American babies have been named Edgar. Its peak came in 2005, when 2,459 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 Edgar stood among all boys' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Edgar?

The median living Edgar is about 30 years old; half are between 19 and 47. An estimated 96 thousand people named Edgar are alive in the United States today.

median 30 020406080100

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

Edgar 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 – – 617 #486
2024 – – 682 #458
2023 – – 714 #436
2022 – – 775 #417
2021 – – 758 #412
2020 – – 789 #391
2019 – – 812 #386
2018 – – 925 #357
2017 – – 940 #356
2016 – – 1,013 #342
2015 – – 1,114 #317
2014 – – 1,180 #302
2013 – – 1,210 #286
2012 – – 1,317 #269
2011 5 #17,539 1,468 #243
2010 – – 1,644 #218
2009 6 #15,800 1,908 #201
2008 – – 2,064 #195
2007 – – 2,420 #168
2006 – – 2,392 #171
2005 5 #17,246 2,454 #168
2004 8 #11,932 2,385 #171
2003 – – 2,320 #172
2002 – – 2,195 #175
2001 10 #9,585 2,376 #161
2000 – – 2,072 #177
1995 14 #6,359 2,321 #152
1990 25 #4,038 2,207 #143
1985 8 #7,773 880 #258
1980 8 #7,606 888 #252
1975 8 #6,674 717 #271
1970 7 #6,532 666 #303
1965 – – 603 #309
1960 – – 716 #294
1955 – – 933 #233
1950 – – 937 #209
1945 – – 869 #180
1940 – – 985 #164
1935 7 #3,501 1,145 #138
1930 16 #2,130 1,526 #119
1925 10 #3,174 1,809 #96
1920 13 #2,626 2,029 #89
1915 10 #2,751 1,895 #85
1910 5 #2,514 441 #80
1905 – – 315 #78
1900 – – 374 #71
1895 – – 323 #64
1890 5 #1,390 338 #61
1885 – – 303 #60
1880 5 #856 283 #61

Famous people named Edgar

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

  1. 1 Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allan Poe American writer and critic (1809–1849) 19th century
  2. 2 Edgar Wright Edgar Wright English filmmaker (born 1974) Contemporary
  3. 3 Edgar Cayce Edgar Cayce American clairvoyant (1877–1945) 19th century
  4. 4 Edgar Davids Edgar Davids Dutch footballer and manager (born 1973) Contemporary
  5. 5 Edgar Rice Burroughs Edgar Rice Burroughs American writer (1875–1950) 19th century
  6. 6 Edgar Degas Edgar Degas French Impressionist artist (1834–1917) 19th century
  7. 7 Edgar Winter Edgar Winter American musician (born 1946) Contemporary
  8. 8 Edgar Ætheling Edgar Ætheling 11th-century claimant to the throne of England 1051–1200 · Medieval
  9. 9 Edgar Bergen Edgar Bergen American ventriloquist, comedian and actor (1903–1978) Contemporary
  10. 10 Edgar Mitchell Edgar Mitchell American astronaut and lunar explorer (1930–2016) Contemporary
  11. 11 Edgar Morin Edgar Morin French philosopher and sociologist (1921–2026) Contemporary
  12. 12 Edgar Lungu Edgar Lungu President of Zambia from 2015 to 2021 (1956–2025) Contemporary
  13. 13 Edgar Wallace Edgar Wallace British writer (1875–1932) 19th century
  14. 14 Edgar, King of Scotland Edgar, King of Scotland King of Alba from 1097 to 1107 1074–1107 · Medieval
  15. 15 Edgar Snow Edgar Snow American journalist (1905–1972) Contemporary
  16. 16 Edgar F. Codd Edgar F. Codd English computer scientist 1923–2003 · Contemporary
  17. 17 Edgar G. Ulmer Edgar G. Ulmer Austrian film director, set designer (1904–1972) Contemporary
  18. 18 Edgar the Peaceful Edgar the Peaceful King of the English from 959 to 975 943–975 · Medieval
  19. 19 Edgar Lee Masters Edgar Lee Masters American poet (1868–1950) 19th century
  20. 20 Edgar Savisaar Edgar Savisaar Estonian politician (1950–2022) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Edgar?

The median living Edgar is about 30 years old. Half of all living Edgars are between 19 and 47 years old.

How many people named Edgar are alive today?

An estimated 96 thousand people named Edgar are alive in the United States, based on 157,919 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Edgar mean?

From Old English Ēadgār, the name of early English kings, from Old English ēad (“rich”) + gār (“spear”).

How popular is the name Edgar in 2025?

Edgar ranked #486 among boys' names in the United States in 2025, with 617 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Edgar?

157,919 babies have been named Edgar in the United States since 1880, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Edgar most popular?

Edgar peaked in 2005, when 2,459 newborns received the name.

Is Edgar a boy or girl name?

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

Is the name Edgar rising or falling?

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

Will Edgar become more popular?

Edgar is trending downward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 545 boys named Edgar 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 Edgar?

Well-known people named Edgar include Edgar Allan Poe (writer), Edgar Wright (film director), Edgar Cayce (occultist).

Names like Edgar

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

Compare Edgar with similar names → More names starting with E →