boys' name ★ peaked 2024

Meir

Meaning Meir is a Jewish male given name and an occasional surname Gender Boy Rank 2025 #948 Trend ↑ Rising 27%

Meir is a Jewish male given name and an occasional surname.

Rank 2025
#948
among boys · ↓40 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
248
named Meir · -4% vs 2024
How common
1 in 6,887
boys born in 2025
Peak year
2024
258 babies
All-time total
4,612
#1,888 all-time among boys
First recorded
1951
in Social Security records

Meir popularity over time

4,612 babies have been named Meir since 1951, 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
0.050.10.150.218801900192019401960198020002020Peak 2024Boys

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 Boys Per year Change Best rank
1880s – – – –
1890s – – – –
1900s – – – –
1910s – – – –
1920s – – – –
1930s – – – –
1940s – – – –
1950s 26 3 – #2,973
1960s 48 5 +85% #2,195
1970s 150 15 +213% #2,111
1980s 272 27 +81% #1,727
1990s 455 46 +67% #1,583
2000s 775 78 +70% #1,429
2010s 1,492 149 +93% #1,045
2020s (to 2025) 1,394 232 +56% #908

Where Meir 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 259 0.15 outside top 500
2027 269 0.16 outside top 500
2028 278 0.16 outside top 500
2029 286 0.17 outside top 500
2030 292 0.17 outside top 500

Where Meir is most popular

Boys named Meir per 1,000 boys born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.136 per 1,000. Strongest in New Jersey, New York, and Florida.

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 Meir 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 Jersey 379 1.88 +1287%
New York 550 1.27 +836%
Florida 47 0.099 -27%
Maryland 11 0.092 -32%
Illinois 11 0.043 -68%
California 38 0.042 -69%
Georgia 6 0.024 -83%
Ohio 6 0.023 -83%
Pennsylvania 5 0.019 -86%
Alaska – – –
Alabama – – –
Arkansas – – –
Arizona – – –
Colorado – – –
Connecticut – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Hawaii – – –
Iowa – – –
Idaho – – –
Indiana – – –
Kansas – – –
Kentucky – – –
Louisiana – – –
Massachusetts – – –
Maine – – –
Michigan – – –
Minnesota – – –
Missouri – – –
Mississippi – – –
Montana – – –
North Carolina – – –
North Dakota – – –
Nebraska – – –
New Hampshire – – –
New Mexico – – –
Nevada – – –
Oklahoma – – –
Oregon – – –
Rhode Island – – –
South Carolina – – –
South Dakota – – –
Tennessee – – –
Texas – – –
Utah – – –
Virginia – – –
Vermont – – –
Washington – – –
Wisconsin – – –
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 Meir

Meir is uncommon for boys in the United States, ranked #948 in 2025 with 248 babies given the name. It is currently rising compared with a decade ago.

Since 1951, 4,612 American babies have been named Meir. Its peak came in 2024, when 258 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 Meir stood among all boys' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Meir?

The median living Meir is about 11 years old; half are between 4 and 21. An estimated 4,500 people named Meir are alive in the United States today.

median 11 020406080100

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

Meir year by year

Every year since 2001, and five-year steps back to 1880. Rank is within each sex.

Year Boys Boys rank
2025 248 #948
2024 258 #908
2023 244 #931
2022 234 #969
2021 188 #1,106
2020 222 #970
2019 197 #1,045
2018 190 #1,065
2017 175 #1,108
2016 156 #1,215
2015 152 #1,212
2014 148 #1,233
2013 111 #1,480
2012 126 #1,354
2011 119 #1,402
2010 118 #1,412
2009 94 #1,681
2008 109 #1,501
2007 114 #1,429
2006 77 #1,804
2005 88 #1,581
2004 79 #1,648
2003 59 #1,976
2002 60 #1,883
2001 50 #2,106
2000 45 #2,213
1995 40 #2,079
1990 28 #2,470
1985 21 #2,479
1980 18 #2,690
1975 20 #2,262
1970 11 #3,009
1965 5 #4,259
1960 – –
1955 – –
1950 – –
1945 – –
1940 – –
1935 – –
1930 – –
1925 – –
1920 – –
1915 – –
1910 – –
1905 – –
1900 – –
1895 – –
1890 – –
1885 – –
1880 – –

Famous people named Meir

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

  1. 1 Meir Kahane Meir Kahane American and Israeli politician (1932–1990) Contemporary
  2. 2 Meir Dagan Meir Dagan Israeli general and Mossad director (1945–2016) Contemporary
  3. 3 Meir Amit Meir Amit Israeli politician (1921–2009) Contemporary
  4. 4 Meir Sheetrit Meir Sheetrit Israeli politician b. 1948 · Contemporary
  5. 5 Meir Shalev Meir Shalev Israeli writer (1948–2023) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Meir?

The median living Meir is about 11 years old. Half of all living Meirs are between 4 and 21 years old.

How many people named Meir are alive today?

An estimated 4,500 people named Meir are alive in the United States, based on 4,612 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Meir mean?

Meir is a Jewish male given name and an occasional surname.

How popular is the name Meir in 2025?

Meir ranked #948 among boys' names in the United States in 2025, with 248 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Meir?

4,612 babies have been named Meir in the United States since 1951, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Meir most popular?

Meir peaked in 2024, when 258 newborns received the name.

Is Meir a boy or girl name?

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

Is the name Meir rising or falling?

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

Will Meir become more popular?

Meir is trending upward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 292 boys named Meir 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 Meir?

Well-known people named Meir include Meir Kahane (politician), Meir Dagan (politician), Meir Amit (politician).

Names like Meir

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

Compare Meir with similar names → More names starting with M →