Baby Names US
Unisex name ★ peaked 2025

Noam

Meaning pleasantness; a male name Gender Unisex · 8% girls Rank 2025 #1,273 Trend ↑ Rising 31%

From Hebrew נועם (“pleasantness; a male name”).

Rank 2025
#1,273
among boys · ↑181 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
163
named Noam · +30% vs 2024
How common
1 in 11,020
boys born in 2025
Peak year
2025
163 babies
All-time total
3,146
#2,591 all-time among boys
First recorded
1961
in Social Security records

Noam popularity over time

3,146 babies have been named Noam since 1961, 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
0.030.050.080.118801900192019401960198020002020BoysGirls
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 – – – – – –
1890s – – – – – –
1900s – – – – – –
1910s – – – – – –
1920s – – – – – –
1930s – – – – – –
1940s – – – – – –
1950s – – – – – –
1960s – 42 42 4 – #3,167
1970s – 123 123 12 +193% #2,510
1980s 5 172 177 18 +44% #2,192
1990s 62 258 320 32 +81% #2,378
2000s 94 623 717 72 +124% #1,651
2010s 60 996 1,056 106 +47% #1,437
2020s (to 2025) 23 688 711 119 +12% #1,273

Where Noam 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 162 0.09 outside top 500
2027 168 0.10 outside top 500
2028 174 0.10 outside top 500
2029 178 0.10 outside top 500
2030 183 0.11 outside top 500

Where Noam is most popular

Boys named Noam per 1,000 boys born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.068 per 1,000. Strongest in New York, New Jersey, and Maryland.

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 Noam 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 York 116 0.268 +295%
New Jersey 40 0.199 +193%
Maryland 19 0.159 +135%
Florida 71 0.150 +121%
California 102 0.112 +64%
Illinois 15 0.059 -13%
Massachusetts 8 0.058 -14%
Ohio 11 0.042 -39%
Texas 28 0.032 -53%
Virginia 5 0.026 -61%
Pennsylvania 5 0.019 -72%
Alaska – – –
Alabama – – –
Arkansas – – –
Arizona – – –
Colorado – – –
Connecticut – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Georgia – – –
Hawaii – – –
Iowa – – –
Idaho – – –
Indiana – – –
Kansas – – –
Kentucky – – –
Louisiana – – –
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 – – –
Utah – – –
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 Noam

Noam is uncommon for boys in the United States, ranked #1,273 in 2025 with 155 babies given the name. It is currently rising compared with a decade ago.

Since 1961, 3,146 American babies have been named Noam, about 92% boys and 8% girls, making it a genuinely unisex name. Its peak came in 2025, when 163 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 Noam stood among all boys' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Noam?

The median living Noam is about 13 years old; half are between 6 and 22. An estimated 3,100 people named Noam are alive in the United States today.

median 13 020406080100

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

Noam 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 8 #11,647 155 #1,273
2024 – – 125 #1,454
2023 – – 109 #1,605
2022 – – 93 #1,778
2021 8 #11,899 104 #1,630
2020 7 #13,102 102 #1,597
2019 6 #15,100 103 #1,611
2018 5 #17,480 106 #1,582
2017 – – 92 #1,713
2016 – – 105 #1,573
2015 7 #14,104 119 #1,437
2014 9 #11,689 101 #1,573
2013 10 #10,809 109 #1,497
2012 9 #11,980 105 #1,532
2011 8 #13,058 80 #1,805
2010 6 #16,422 76 #1,894
2009 10 #11,270 96 #1,651
2008 8 #13,477 90 #1,703
2007 14 #8,881 84 #1,768
2006 9 #12,157 68 #1,987
2005 11 #9,954 66 #1,939
2004 8 #12,434 55 #2,153
2003 11 #9,531 49 #2,224
2002 10 #10,046 42 #2,418
2001 8 #11,777 45 #2,267
2000 5 #16,862 28 #3,130
1995 6 #12,900 29 #2,601
1990 – – 26 #2,599
1985 – – 18 #2,796
1980 – – 15 #3,060
1975 – – 17 #2,510
1970 – – 9 #3,450
1965 – – 5 #4,279
1960 – – – –
1955 – – – –
1950 – – – –
1945 – – – –
1940 – – – –
1935 – – – –
1930 – – – –
1925 – – – –
1920 – – – –
1915 – – – –
1910 – – – –
1905 – – – –
1900 – – – –
1895 – – – –
1890 – – – –
1885 – – – –
1880 – – – –

Famous people named Noam

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

  1. 1 Noam Chomsky Noam Chomsky American linguist and activist (born 1928) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Noam?

The median living Noam is about 13 years old. Half of all living Noams are between 6 and 22 years old.

How many people named Noam are alive today?

An estimated 3,100 people named Noam are alive in the United States, based on 3,146 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Noam mean?

From Hebrew נועם (“pleasantness; a male name”).

How popular is the name Noam in 2025?

Noam ranked #1,273 among boys' names in the United States in 2025, with 155 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Noam?

3,146 babies have been named Noam in the United States since 1961, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Noam most popular?

Noam peaked in 2025, when 163 newborns received the name.

Is Noam a boy or girl name?

Noam is used for both: about 8% of babies named Noam have been girls and 92% boys.

Is the name Noam rising or falling?

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

Will Noam become more popular?

Noam is trending upward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 183 boys named Noam 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 Noam?

Well-known people named Noam include Noam Chomsky (linguist).

Names like Noam

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

Compare Noam with similar names → More names starting with N →