boys' name ★ peaked 2017

Julian

Meaning Ultimately from Latin Iūliānus Gender Boy · 1% girls Rank 2025 #25 Trend → Stable

Ultimately from Latin Iūliānus.

Rank 2025
#25
among boys · ↑5 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
7,626
named Julian · +3% vs 2024
How common
1 in 225
boys born in 2025
Peak year
2017
8,477 babies
All-time total
268,291
#142 all-time among boys
First recorded
1880
in Social Security records

Julian popularity over time

268,291 babies have been named Julian 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 – 440 440 44 – #227
1890s 31 558 589 59 +34% #206
1900s 45 793 838 84 +42% #176
1910s 116 4,650 4,766 477 +469% #182
1920s 181 6,897 7,078 708 +49% #181
1930s 94 4,860 4,954 495 -30% #217
1940s 97 5,157 5,254 525 +6% #238
1950s 87 4,827 4,914 491 -6% #302
1960s 126 4,835 4,961 496 +1% #344
1970s 157 6,800 6,957 696 +40% #262
1980s 477 12,933 13,410 1,341 +93% #138
1990s 662 27,674 28,336 2,834 +111% #111
2000s 720 60,391 61,111 6,111 +116% #61
2010s 359 79,530 79,889 7,989 +31% #31
2020s (to 2025) 154 44,640 44,794 7,466 -7% #25

Where Julian 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 7,533 4.41 #27
2027 7,474 4.38 #27
2028 7,424 4.35 #29
2029 7,382 4.32 #29
2030 7,347 4.30 #29

Where Julian is most popular

Boys named Julian per 1,000 boys born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 4.29 per 1,000. Strongest in Rhode Island, District of Columbia, and California.

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 Julian 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 203 12.5 +190%
District of Columbia 152 10.3 +140%
California 8,229 9.00 +110%
Nevada 485 8.51 +98%
New Mexico 252 7.65 +78%
Massachusetts 1,033 7.51 +75%
Arizona 1,188 7.26 +69%
New Hampshire 147 6.62 +54%
Connecticut 423 6.25 +46%
Delaware 94 6.20 +44%
Oregon 460 6.06 +41%
Texas 5,338 6.06 +41%
Vermont 38 6.05 +41%
Illinois 1,530 5.99 +39%
Washington 934 5.71 +33%
Colorado 698 5.41 +26%
New Jersey 1,007 5.00 +16%
Nebraska 204 4.69 +9%
Kansas 313 4.56 +6%
Florida 2,124 4.49 ≈ national
Maine 87 4.48 ≈ national
New York 1,940 4.48 ≈ national
Hawaii 67 4.31 ≈ national
Maryland 480 4.02 -6%
Idaho 162 3.96 -8%
Pennsylvania 1,033 3.89 -9%
Virginia 737 3.88 -10%
North Carolina 977 3.83 -11%
Oklahoma 329 3.72 -13%
Georgia 860 3.39 -21%
Indiana 530 3.31 -23%
Wyoming 19 3.28 -24%
Michigan 671 3.28 -24%
Utah 312 3.27 -24%
Wisconsin 386 3.26 -24%
Iowa 224 3.25 -24%
Arkansas 205 3.24 -25%
Minnesota 377 3.07 -28%
Alaska 36 3.02 -30%
Ohio 748 2.82 -34%
South Carolina 286 2.77 -36%
North Dakota 43 2.52 -41%
Missouri 349 2.52 -41%
Tennessee 432 2.39 -44%
South Dakota 42 2.26 -47%
Louisiana 230 2.25 -48%
Kentucky 224 2.23 -48%
Alabama 236 2.16 -50%
West Virginia 64 1.96 -54%
Mississippi 96 1.69 -61%
Montana 29 1.64 -62%

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 Julian

Julian is a top-50 name for boys in the United States, ranked #25 in 2025 with 7,603 babies given the name. It is currently holding steady compared with a decade ago.

Since 1880, 268,291 American babies have been named Julian. Its peak came in 2017, when 8,477 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 Julian stood among all boys' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Julian?

The median living Julian is about 15 years old; half are between 7 and 25. An estimated 242 thousand people named Julian are alive in the United States today.

median 15 020406080100

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

Julian 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 23 #5,477 7,603 #25
2024 18 #6,515 7,390 #30
2023 20 #6,057 7,097 #33
2022 29 #4,721 7,305 #35
2021 30 #4,554 7,693 #33
2020 34 #4,114 7,552 #34
2019 32 #4,390 8,443 #31
2018 35 #4,111 8,368 #36
2017 22 #5,737 8,455 #37
2016 45 #3,489 8,388 #39
2015 26 #5,204 8,064 #45
2014 31 #4,597 7,686 #47
2013 41 #3,740 7,521 #47
2012 38 #4,020 7,389 #53
2011 35 #4,189 7,627 #50
2010 54 #3,094 7,589 #53
2009 47 #3,485 7,388 #62
2008 63 #2,840 7,469 #61
2007 68 #2,696 6,781 #66
2006 69 #2,614 6,797 #65
2005 78 #2,302 6,116 #74
2004 69 #2,462 5,673 #74
2003 64 #2,536 5,410 #77
2002 74 #2,237 5,223 #78
2001 84 #2,022 4,944 #82
2000 104 #1,696 4,590 #87
1995 58 #2,295 2,703 #132
1990 69 #1,979 2,700 #123
1985 48 #2,191 1,529 #174
1980 30 #2,953 753 #280
1975 14 #4,441 744 #262
1970 12 #4,611 634 #309
1965 9 #4,638 461 #353
1960 8 #4,950 492 #352
1955 9 #4,214 470 #339
1950 12 #3,149 505 #302
1945 15 #2,284 462 #280
1940 7 #3,674 510 #238
1935 7 #3,583 497 #235
1930 17 #2,066 592 #219
1925 23 #1,820 716 #195
1920 20 #1,985 693 #195
1915 13 #2,315 579 #191
1910 5 #2,593 129 #201
1905 – – 78 #216
1900 7 #1,650 79 #226
1895 – – 55 #240
1890 8 #1,054 63 #209
1885 – – 49 #236
1880 – – 32 #296

Famous people named Julian

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

  1. 1 Julian McMahon Julian McMahon Australian and American actor (1968–2025) Contemporary
  2. 2 Julian Assange Julian Assange Australian WikiLeaks editor (born 1971) Contemporary
  3. 3 Julian Casablancas Singer, United States b. 1978 · Contemporary
  4. 4 Julian Lennon Julian Lennon English musician, photographer, and philanthropist (born 1963) Contemporary
  5. 5 Julian Nagelsmann Julian Nagelsmann German football manager (born 1987) Contemporary
  6. 6 Julian Sands Julian Sands British actor (1958–2023) Contemporary
  7. 7 Julian Fellowes Julian Fellowes English actor, writer, and politician (born 1949) Contemporary
  8. 8 Julian Glover Julian Glover English actor (born 1935) Contemporary
  9. 9 Julian Julian Roman emperor from 361 to 363, Neoplatonic philosopher 331–363 · Antiquity
  10. 10 Julian Barnes Julian Barnes English writer (born 1946) Contemporary
  11. 11 Julian of Norwich Julian of Norwich English anchoress (c. 1343 – after 1416) 1342–1416 · Medieval
  12. 12 Julian Brandt Julian Brandt German footballer (born 1996) Contemporary
  13. 13 Julian Schnabel Julian Schnabel American artist and filmmaker (born 1951) Contemporary
  14. 14 Julian Richings Julian Richings English Canadian actor b. 1955 · Contemporary
  15. 15 Julian Beck Julian Beck American actor, stage director, poet, and painter (1925–1985) Contemporary
  16. 16 Julian Castro Julian Castro American politician (born 1974) Contemporary
  17. 17 Julian Huxley Julian Huxley English biologist and philosopher (1887–1975) 19th century
  18. 18 Julian Lloyd Webber Julian Lloyd Webber British cellist and conductor (born 1951) Contemporary
  19. 19 Julian Alaphilippe Julian Alaphilippe French bicycle racer (born 1992) Contemporary
  20. 20 Julian Schwinger Julian Schwinger American theoretical physicist (1918–1994) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Julian?

The median living Julian is about 15 years old. Half of all living Julians are between 7 and 25 years old.

How many people named Julian are alive today?

An estimated 242 thousand people named Julian are alive in the United States, based on 268,291 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Julian mean?

Ultimately from Latin Iūliānus.

How popular is the name Julian in 2025?

Julian ranked #25 among boys' names in the United States in 2025, with 7,603 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Julian?

268,291 babies have been named Julian in the United States since 1880, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Julian most popular?

Julian peaked in 2017, when 8,477 newborns received the name.

Is Julian a boy or girl name?

Julian is overwhelmingly a boy's name: 99% of babies with the name.

Is the name Julian rising or falling?

Julian has been roughly stable over the past decade.

Will Julian become more popular?

Julian looks stable. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 7,347 boys named Julian in 2030, ranking around #29. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Julian?

Well-known people named Julian include Julian McMahon (actor), Julian Assange (journalist), Julian Casablancas (singer).

Names like Julian

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

Compare Julian with similar names → More names starting with J →