boys' name ★ peaked 2017

Gideon

Meaning ón, “Gideon Gender Boy Rank 2025 #337 Trend → Stable

Borrowed from Hebrew גִּדְעוֹן (gid'ón, “Gideon”) ("feller", "hewer", "mighty warrior").

Rank 2025
#337
among boys · ↓8 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
993
named Gideon · -6% vs 2024
How common
1 in 1,720
boys born in 2025
Peak year
2017
1,161 babies
All-time total
22,302
#787 all-time among boys
First recorded
1880
in Social Security records

Gideon popularity over time

22,302 babies have been named Gideon 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
0.190.380.560.7518801900192019401960198020002020BoysGirls
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 – 81 81 8 – #529
1890s – 24 24 2 -70% #838
1900s – 40 40 4 +67% #807
1910s – 185 185 19 +363% #1,048
1920s – 226 226 23 +22% #1,324
1930s – 115 115 12 -49% #1,788
1940s – 120 120 12 +4% #1,663
1950s – 160 160 16 +33% #1,753
1960s – 207 207 21 +29% #1,285
1970s – 402 402 40 +94% #1,216
1980s – 704 704 70 +75% #992
1990s – 1,089 1,089 109 +55% #950
2000s 6 3,460 3,466 347 +218% #526
2010s 10 9,221 9,231 923 +166% #304
2020s (to 2025) 16 6,236 6,252 1,042 +13% #308

Where Gideon 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 992 0.58 #338
2027 992 0.58 #338
2028 991 0.58 #338
2029 991 0.58 #338
2030 991 0.58 #338

Where Gideon is most popular

Boys named Gideon per 1,000 boys born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.603 per 1,000. Strongest in Idaho, Alaska, and Maine.

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 Gideon 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
Idaho 85 2.08 +245%
Alaska 24 2.02 +234%
Maine 37 1.91 +216%
Wisconsin 155 1.31 +117%
Missouri 174 1.26 +108%
Indiana 199 1.24 +106%
West Virginia 40 1.23 +103%
Nebraska 52 1.20 +98%
Kansas 82 1.20 +98%
Michigan 239 1.17 +94%
Oregon 87 1.15 +90%
Utah 109 1.14 +89%
Iowa 73 1.06 +76%
Ohio 279 1.05 +75%
Washington 169 1.03 +71%
Minnesota 126 1.03 +70%
Montana 18 1.02 +69%
Oklahoma 89 1.01 +67%
Arkansas 62 0.980 +63%
Pennsylvania 255 0.960 +59%
Vermont 6 0.955 +59%
Tennessee 169 0.936 +55%
Kentucky 89 0.887 +47%
South Carolina 91 0.881 +46%
Virginia 162 0.854 +42%
Colorado 101 0.783 +30%
Maryland 89 0.746 +24%
Arizona 121 0.740 +23%
North Dakota 12 0.703 +17%
District of Columbia 10 0.677 +12%
North Carolina 167 0.654 +9%
Alabama 69 0.631 +5%
Illinois 155 0.606 ≈ national
Texas 463 0.525 -13%
Florida 225 0.475 -21%
Georgia 110 0.434 -28%
Louisiana 44 0.430 -29%
New York 181 0.418 -31%
Delaware 6 0.396 -34%
South Dakota 7 0.376 -38%
Mississippi 20 0.352 -42%
Massachusetts 44 0.320 -47%
California 283 0.310 -49%
Rhode Island 5 0.307 -49%
Nevada 16 0.281 -53%
New Hampshire 6 0.270 -55%
New Jersey 46 0.228 -62%
New Mexico 7 0.212 -65%
Connecticut 8 0.118 -80%
Hawaii – – –
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 Gideon

Gideon is moderately common for boys in the United States, ranked #337 in 2025 with 993 babies given the name. It is currently rising compared with a decade ago.

Since 1880, 22,302 American babies have been named Gideon. Its peak came in 2017, when 1,161 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 2010s.

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

How old are people named Gideon?

The median living Gideon is about 10 years old; half are between 5 and 17. An estimated 21 thousand people named Gideon are alive in the United States today.

median 10 020406080100

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

Gideon 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 – – 993 #337
2024 – – 1,054 #329
2023 – – 1,047 #318
2022 9 #10,658 1,027 #330
2021 7 #12,646 1,084 #308
2020 – – 1,031 #321
2019 – – 1,043 #320
2018 5 #16,514 1,108 #308
2017 – – 1,161 #304
2016 – – 1,034 #336
2015 – – 1,055 #327
2014 – – 944 #348
2013 – – 846 #367
2012 – – 765 #391
2011 5 #17,703 689 #411
2010 – – 576 #460
2009 – – 486 #544
2008 – – 504 #530
2007 – – 490 #526
2006 – – 433 #575
2005 – – 304 #684
2004 – – 290 #688
2003 – – 290 #674
2002 6 #14,194 226 #764
2001 – – 257 #699
2000 – – 180 #876
1995 – – 137 #950
1990 – – 78 #1,256
1985 – – 51 #1,363
1980 – – 83 #992
1975 – – 49 #1,216
1970 – – 26 #1,725
1965 – – 17 #1,952
1960 – – 15 #2,160
1955 – – 20 #1,753
1950 – – 17 #1,841
1945 – – 9 #2,462
1940 – – 12 #2,117
1935 – – 9 #2,604
1930 – – 14 #2,114
1925 – – 14 #2,239
1920 – – 28 #1,399
1915 – – 16 #1,822
1910 – – 8 #1,249
1905 – – – –
1900 – – 11 #807
1895 – – – –
1890 – – 7 #838
1885 – – 13 #529
1880 – – 10 #616

Famous people named Gideon

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

  1. 1 Gideon Gideon Character in the biblical Book of Judges -1140–-1080 · Antiquity
  2. 2 Gideon Sa'ar Gideon Sa'ar Israeli politician (born 1966) Contemporary
  3. 3 Gideon Levy Gideon Levy Israeli journalist and author (born 1953) Contemporary
  4. 4 Gideon Welles Gideon Welles United States Secretary of the Navy from 1861 to 1869 1802–1878 · 19th century
  5. 5 Gideon Mantell Gideon Mantell British scientist and obstetrician 1790–1852 · 18th century
  6. 6 Gideon Sundback Gideon Sundback Swedish-American inventor (1880-1954) 19th century
  7. 7 Gideon Ståhlberg Gideon Ståhlberg Swedish chess grandmaster (1908–1967) Contemporary
  8. 8 Gideon Jung Gideon Jung German footballer (born 1994) Contemporary
  9. 9 Gideon Toury Gideon Toury Israeli translation scholar 1942–2016 · Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Gideon?

The median living Gideon is about 10 years old. Half of all living Gideons are between 5 and 17 years old.

How many people named Gideon are alive today?

An estimated 21 thousand people named Gideon are alive in the United States, based on 22,302 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Gideon mean?

Borrowed from Hebrew גִּדְעוֹן (gid'ón, “Gideon”) ("feller", "hewer", "mighty warrior").

How popular is the name Gideon in 2025?

Gideon ranked #337 among boys' names in the United States in 2025, with 993 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Gideon?

22,302 babies have been named Gideon in the United States since 1880, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Gideon most popular?

Gideon peaked in 2017, when 1,161 newborns received the name.

Is Gideon a boy or girl name?

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

Is the name Gideon rising or falling?

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

Will Gideon become more popular?

Gideon looks stable. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 991 boys named Gideon in 2030, ranking around #338. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Gideon?

Well-known people named Gideon include Gideon (politician), Gideon Sa'ar (politician), Gideon Levy (writer).

Names like Gideon

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

Compare Gideon with similar names → More names starting with G →