boys' name ★ peaked 1952

Gordon

Meaning Gordon is a masculine given name in the English language Gender Boy Rank 2025 #1,052 Trend ↓ Falling 14%

Gordon is a masculine given name in the English language.

Rank 2025
#1,052
among boys · ↑35 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
209
named Gordon · +5% vs 2024
How common
1 in 8,173
boys born in 2025
Peak year
1952
2,835 babies
All-time total
155,579
#222 all-time among boys
First recorded
1880
in Social Security records

Gordon popularity over time

155,579 babies have been named Gordon 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
0.751.52.25318801900192019401960198020002020BoysGirls
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 – 499 499 50 – #177
1890s 5 939 944 94 +89% #139
1900s – 1,642 1,642 164 +74% #115
1910s 92 13,641 13,733 1,373 +736% #84
1920s 207 25,622 25,829 2,583 +88% #72
1930s 137 25,460 25,597 2,560 -1% #70
1940s 57 24,468 24,525 2,453 -4% #91
1950s 54 25,741 25,795 2,580 +5% #108
1960s 64 15,832 15,896 1,590 -38% #159
1970s 36 6,583 6,619 662 -58% #238
1980s 18 5,030 5,048 505 -24% #345
1990s – 3,532 3,532 353 -30% #471
2000s – 2,304 2,304 230 -35% #641
2010s – 2,283 2,283 228 -1% #812
2020s (to 2025) – 1,333 1,333 222 -3% #929

Where Gordon 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 203 0.12 outside top 500
2027 199 0.12 outside top 500
2028 195 0.11 outside top 500
2029 192 0.11 outside top 500
2030 189 0.11 outside top 500

Where Gordon is most popular

Boys named Gordon per 1,000 boys born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.128 per 1,000. Strongest in Minnesota, Michigan, and North Dakota.

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 Gordon 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
Minnesota 76 0.620 +383%
Michigan 74 0.361 +182%
North Dakota 6 0.351 +174%
Wisconsin 41 0.346 +170%
Montana 6 0.340 +165%
South Dakota 6 0.322 +151%
Colorado 31 0.240 +87%
Missouri 28 0.202 +57%
Massachusetts 24 0.175 +36%
Pennsylvania 45 0.169 +32%
Virginia 32 0.169 +31%
New York 71 0.164 +28%
Utah 15 0.157 +22%
Ohio 39 0.147 +15%
Iowa 10 0.145 +13%
Illinois 37 0.145 +13%
Nebraska 5 0.115 -10%
Arizona 15 0.092 -29%
California 83 0.091 -29%
Tennessee 16 0.089 -31%
North Carolina 21 0.082 -36%
Indiana 13 0.081 -37%
Florida 34 0.072 -44%
Texas 59 0.067 -48%
Kentucky 5 0.050 -61%
Georgia 12 0.047 -63%
Maryland 5 0.042 -67%
New Jersey 8 0.040 -69%
Alaska – – –
Alabama – – –
Arkansas – – –
Connecticut – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Hawaii – – –
Idaho – – –
Kansas – – –
Louisiana – – –
Maine – – –
Mississippi – – –
New Hampshire – – –
New Mexico – – –
Nevada – – –
Oklahoma – – –
Oregon – – –
Rhode Island – – –
South Carolina – – –
Vermont – – –
Washington – – –
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 Gordon

Gordon is uncommon for boys in the United States, ranked #1,052 in 2025 with 209 babies given the name. It is currently holding steady compared with a decade ago.

Since 1880, 155,579 American babies have been named Gordon. Its peak came in 1952, when 2,835 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 1950s.

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

How old are people named Gordon?

The median living Gordon is about 66 years old; half are between 52 and 75. An estimated 69 thousand people named Gordon are alive in the United States today.

median 66 020406080100

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

Gordon 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 – – 209 #1,052
2024 – – 200 #1,087
2023 – – 223 #987
2022 – – 233 #971
2021 – – 243 #929
2020 – – 225 #965
2019 – – 267 #842
2018 – – 271 #825
2017 – – 275 #818
2016 – – 220 #948
2015 – – 279 #812
2014 – – 224 #941
2013 – – 189 #1,029
2012 – – 195 #1,014
2011 – – 183 #1,037
2010 – – 180 #1,076
2009 – – 183 #1,043
2008 – – 212 #950
2007 – – 196 #995
2006 – – 215 #905
2005 – – 208 #877
2004 – – 246 #753
2003 – – 235 #757
2002 – – 275 #673
2001 – – 249 #709
2000 – – 285 #641
1995 – – 353 #541
1990 – – 441 #471
1985 – – 488 #374
1980 – – 531 #345
1975 10 #5,669 585 #310
1970 5 #8,424 990 #238
1965 5 #6,869 1,444 #178
1960 11 #4,000 2,149 #159
1955 6 #5,438 2,557 #128
1950 – – 2,689 #108
1945 5 #4,815 2,146 #109
1940 5 #4,617 2,296 #91
1935 13 #2,355 2,615 #70
1930 21 #1,770 2,611 #77
1925 20 #1,965 2,748 #72
1920 18 #2,111 2,277 #85
1915 19 #1,756 1,717 #90
1910 – – 265 #120
1905 – – 165 #134
1900 – – 137 #152
1895 – – 104 #148
1890 – – 63 #208
1885 – – 48 #237
1880 – – 51 #233

Famous people named Gordon

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

  1. 1 Gordon Ramsay Gordon Ramsay British celebrity chef (born 1966) Contemporary
  2. 2 Gordon Brown Gordon Brown Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2007 to 2010 b. 1951 · Contemporary
  3. 3 Gordon Lightfoot Gordon Lightfoot Canadian singer-songwriter (1938–2023) Contemporary
  4. 4 Gordon Banks Gordon Banks English footballer (1937–2019) Contemporary
  5. 5 Gordon Strachan Gordon Strachan Scottish football coach and former player b. 1957 · Contemporary
  6. 6 Gordon Jackson Gordon Jackson Scottish actor (1923–1990) Contemporary
  7. 7 Gordon Cooper Gordon Cooper American astronaut (1927–2004) Contemporary
  8. 8 Gordon Liu Hong Kong actor and martial artist (b. 1955) b. 1951 · Contemporary
  9. 9 Gordon Parks Gordon Parks American photographer, musician, writer and film director (1912–2006) Contemporary
  10. 10 Gordon Moore Gordon Moore American businessman (1929–2023) Contemporary
  11. 11 Gordon B. Hinckley Gordon B. Hinckley American religious leader and author (1910–2008) Contemporary
  12. 12 Gordon Tootoosis Gordon Tootoosis Canadian actor 1941–2011 · Contemporary
  13. 13 Gordon Scott Gordon Scott American actor (1926–2007) Contemporary
  14. 14 Gordon Bajnai Gordon Bajnai Prime Minister of Hungary from 2009 to 2010 b. 1968 · Contemporary
  15. 15 Gordon Willis Gordon Willis American cinematographer and film director 1931–2014 · Contemporary
  16. 16 Gordon Thomson Gordon Thomson Canadian actor (born 1945) Contemporary
  17. 17 Gordon Haskell Gordon Haskell English musician and songwriter (1946–2020) Contemporary
  18. 18 Gordon Allport Gordon Allport American psychologist (1897–1967) 19th century
  19. 19 Gordon Matta-Clark American artist (1943–1978) Contemporary
  20. 20 Gordon Douglas Gordon Douglas American film director (1907–1993) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Gordon?

The median living Gordon is about 66 years old. Half of all living Gordons are between 52 and 75 years old.

How many people named Gordon are alive today?

An estimated 69 thousand people named Gordon are alive in the United States, based on 155,579 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Gordon mean?

Gordon is a masculine given name in the English language.

How popular is the name Gordon in 2025?

Gordon ranked #1,052 among boys' names in the United States in 2025, with 209 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Gordon?

155,579 babies have been named Gordon in the United States since 1880, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Gordon most popular?

Gordon peaked in 1952, when 2,835 newborns received the name.

Is Gordon a boy or girl name?

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

Is the name Gordon rising or falling?

Gordon has been roughly stable over the past decade.

Will Gordon become more popular?

Gordon is trending downward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 189 boys named Gordon 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 Gordon?

Well-known people named Gordon include Gordon Ramsay (chef), Gordon Brown (politician), Gordon Lightfoot (singer).

Names like Gordon

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

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