boys' name ★ peaked 2022

Knox

Meaning round hill Gender Boy · 1% girls Rank 2025 #196 Trend ↑ Rising 15%

Borrowed from Scottish Gaelic cnoc (“round hill”).

Rank 2025
#196
among boys · ↑13 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
1,849
named Knox · +7% vs 2024
How common
1 in 930
boys born in 2025
Peak year
2022
1,931 babies
All-time total
24,382
#757 all-time among boys
First recorded
1881
in Social Security records

Knox popularity over time

24,382 babies have been named Knox since 1881, 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
0.380.751.131.518801900192019401960198020002020BoysGirls
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 – 15 15 2 – #677
1890s – 5 5 1 -67% #1,184
1900s – 20 20 2 +300% #1,006
1910s – 111 111 11 +455% #1,507
1920s – 173 173 17 +56% #1,678
1930s – 95 95 10 -45% #1,975
1940s – 111 111 11 +17% #1,852
1950s – 92 92 9 -17% #2,014
1960s – 41 41 4 -55% #2,807
1970s – 20 20 2 -51% #3,689
1980s – 30 30 3 +50% #4,950
1990s – 127 127 13 +323% #3,247
2000s – 753 753 75 +493% #704
2010s 115 12,055 12,170 1,217 +1516% #219
2020s (to 2025) 125 10,494 10,619 1,770 +45% #196

Where Knox 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 1,877 1.10 #193
2027 1,912 1.12 #192
2028 1,942 1.14 #188
2029 1,968 1.15 #187
2030 1,991 1.17 #186

Where Knox is most popular

Boys named Knox per 1,000 boys born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 1.04 per 1,000. Strongest in South Dakota, Nebraska, 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 Knox 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 78 4.19 +304%
Nebraska 167 3.84 +270%
North Dakota 63 3.69 +256%
Wyoming 21 3.63 +250%
Montana 63 3.57 +244%
Hawaii 47 3.03 +192%
Idaho 122 2.98 +187%
Iowa 199 2.89 +178%
Utah 262 2.74 +164%
Arkansas 162 2.56 +147%
West Virginia 80 2.45 +136%
Oklahoma 212 2.40 +131%
Missouri 325 2.34 +126%
Kentucky 234 2.33 +125%
Kansas 136 1.98 +91%
Tennessee 346 1.92 +85%
Indiana 303 1.89 +82%
Maine 36 1.86 +79%
Ohio 482 1.82 +75%
South Carolina 184 1.78 +72%
Mississippi 100 1.76 +70%
Louisiana 164 1.60 +54%
Alabama 169 1.55 +49%
Minnesota 181 1.48 +42%
Wisconsin 174 1.47 +42%
Georgia 370 1.46 +41%
Illinois 315 1.23 +19%
Michigan 247 1.21 +16%
Colorado 152 1.18 +13%
North Carolina 299 1.17 +13%
Arizona 175 1.07 ≈ national
Oregon 81 1.07 ≈ national
Virginia 201 1.06 ≈ national
Delaware 16 1.06 ≈ national
Texas 911 1.03 ≈ national
Pennsylvania 254 0.957 -8%
Washington 155 0.947 -9%
Maryland 110 0.922 -11%
Nevada 52 0.912 -12%
New Hampshire 19 0.856 -18%
Florida 396 0.836 -19%
New York 235 0.543 -48%
Alaska 6 0.504 -51%
California 412 0.451 -57%
Connecticut 30 0.443 -57%
New Mexico 14 0.425 -59%
Massachusetts 57 0.415 -60%
District of Columbia 5 0.339 -67%
New Jersey 64 0.318 -69%
Rhode Island 5 0.307 -70%
Vermont – – –

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 Knox

Knox is moderately common for boys in the United States, ranked #196 in 2025 with 1,836 babies given the name. It is currently rising compared with a decade ago.

Since 1881, 24,382 American babies have been named Knox. Its peak came in 2022, when 1,931 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 2020s.

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

How old are people named Knox?

The median living Knox is about 6 years old; half are between 3 and 10. An estimated 24 thousand people named Knox are alive in the United States today.

median 6 020406080100

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

Knox 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 13 #8,121 1,836 #196
2024 20 #6,056 1,706 #209
2023 22 #5,656 1,783 #208
2022 29 #4,731 1,902 #199
2021 23 #5,487 1,737 #220
2020 18 #6,506 1,530 #238
2019 19 #6,304 1,563 #241
2018 21 #5,913 1,707 #219
2017 18 #6,690 1,640 #233
2016 16 #7,442 1,539 #245
2015 14 #8,233 1,403 #258
2014 11 #9,879 1,244 #286
2013 9 #11,513 928 #344
2012 – – 822 #368
2011 7 #14,116 630 #434
2010 – – 579 #459
2009 – – 341 #704
2008 – – 93 #1,661
2007 – – 61 #2,201
2006 – – 60 #2,163
2005 – – 48 #2,415
2004 – – 50 #2,297
2003 – – 33 #2,968
2002 – – 25 #3,515
2001 – – 20 #4,051
2000 – – 22 #3,712
1995 – – 11 #5,353
1990 – – 7 #6,842
1985 – – 8 #4,950
1980 – – – –
1975 – – – –
1970 – – 8 #3,689
1965 – – 5 #4,213
1960 – – – –
1955 – – 8 #3,099
1950 – – 10 #2,507
1945 – – 9 #2,490
1940 – – 15 #1,852
1935 – – 9 #2,627
1930 – – 13 #2,241
1925 – – 11 #2,677
1920 – – 16 #2,096
1915 – – 9 #2,732
1910 – – – –
1905 – – – –
1900 – – 8 #1,006
1895 – – – –
1890 – – – –
1885 – – – –
1880 – – – –

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Knox?

The median living Knox is about 6 years old. Half of all living Knoxs are between 3 and 10 years old.

How many people named Knox are alive today?

An estimated 24 thousand people named Knox are alive in the United States, based on 24,382 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Knox mean?

Borrowed from Scottish Gaelic cnoc (“round hill”).

How popular is the name Knox in 2025?

Knox ranked #196 among boys' names in the United States in 2025, with 1,836 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Knox?

24,382 babies have been named Knox in the United States since 1881, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Knox most popular?

Knox peaked in 2022, when 1,931 newborns received the name.

Is Knox a boy or girl name?

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

Is the name Knox rising or falling?

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

Will Knox become more popular?

Knox is trending upward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 1,991 boys named Knox in 2030, which would rank around #186. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Names like Knox

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

Compare Knox with similar names → More names starting with K →