boys' name ★ peaked 1953

Philip

Meaning fond of horses Gender Boy Rank 2025 #528 Trend ↓ Falling 11%

From Middle English Philip, ultimately from Ancient Greek Φίλιππος (Phílippos), name of ancient kings of Macedonia, from φίλιππος (phílippos, “fond of horses”), from…

Rank 2025
#528
among boys · ↓7 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
568
named Philip · -3% vs 2024
How common
1 in 3,007
boys born in 2025
Peak year
1953
6,288 babies
All-time total
345,173
#100 all-time among boys
First recorded
1880
in Social Security records

Philip popularity over time

345,173 babies have been named Philip 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
123418801900192019401960198020002020BoysGirls
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 – 1,741 1,741 174 – #81
1890s 6 2,147 2,153 215 +24% #80
1900s 6 2,817 2,823 282 +31% #76
1910s 58 18,166 18,224 1,822 +546% #66
1920s 158 27,268 27,426 2,743 +50% #70
1930s 120 28,847 28,967 2,897 +6% #62
1940s 107 48,735 48,842 4,884 +69% #52
1950s 99 60,853 60,952 6,095 +25% #53
1960s 140 44,780 44,920 4,492 -26% #76
1970s 174 31,367 31,541 3,154 -30% #83
1980s 232 35,733 35,965 3,597 +14% #79
1990s 37 20,460 20,497 2,050 -43% #111
2000s – 10,193 10,193 1,019 -50% #255
2010s – 7,216 7,216 722 -29% #387
2020s (to 2025) – 3,713 3,713 619 -14% #452

Where Philip 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 557 0.33 outside top 500
2027 548 0.32 outside top 500
2028 540 0.32 outside top 500
2029 534 0.31 outside top 500
2030 529 0.31 outside top 500

Where Philip is most popular

Boys named Philip per 1,000 boys born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.354 per 1,000. Strongest in New Hampshire, District of Columbia, and Massachusetts.

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 Philip 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 Hampshire 22 0.991 +180%
District of Columbia 12 0.813 +130%
Massachusetts 92 0.669 +89%
North Dakota 11 0.644 +82%
Virginia 119 0.627 +77%
Louisiana 60 0.587 +66%
New York 252 0.582 +65%
Minnesota 70 0.571 +61%
Washington 88 0.538 +52%
New Jersey 104 0.517 +46%
Pennsylvania 135 0.508 +44%
Connecticut 33 0.487 +38%
Oregon 37 0.487 +38%
Maryland 57 0.478 +35%
South Carolina 49 0.474 +34%
Indiana 71 0.443 +25%
Ohio 117 0.441 +25%
Idaho 18 0.440 +24%
Wisconsin 50 0.422 +19%
Illinois 107 0.419 +18%
North Carolina 104 0.407 +15%
Missouri 54 0.390 +10%
Hawaii 6 0.386 +9%
Florida 174 0.367 ≈ national
Michigan 70 0.342 ≈ national
Georgia 84 0.332 -6%
California 298 0.326 -8%
Colorado 42 0.325 -8%
Kansas 22 0.321 -9%
Alabama 35 0.320 -9%
Maine 6 0.309 -13%
Rhode Island 5 0.307 -13%
Iowa 21 0.305 -14%
Tennessee 53 0.294 -17%
Utah 27 0.283 -20%
Texas 246 0.279 -21%
Kentucky 26 0.259 -27%
Arizona 33 0.202 -43%
Mississippi 8 0.141 -60%
Oklahoma 11 0.124 -65%
Nebraska 5 0.115 -67%
Arkansas 6 0.095 -73%
Nevada 5 0.088 -75%
Alaska – – –
Delaware – – –
Montana – – –
New Mexico – – –
South Dakota – – –
Vermont – – –
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 Philip

Philip is uncommon for boys in the United States, ranked #528 in 2025 with 568 babies given the name. It is currently declining compared with a decade ago.

Since 1880, 345,173 American babies have been named Philip. Its peak came in 1953, when 6,288 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 Philip stood among all boys' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Philip?

The median living Philip is about 57 years old; half are between 39 and 70. An estimated 216 thousand people named Philip are alive in the United States today.

median 57 020406080100

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

Philip 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 – – 568 #528
2024 – – 588 #521
2023 – – 605 #499
2022 – – 619 #493
2021 – – 675 #452
2020 – – 658 #453
2019 – – 696 #439
2018 – – 693 #437
2017 – – 729 #426
2016 – – 712 #435
2015 – – 708 #433
2014 – – 799 #389
2013 – – 769 #387
2012 – – 715 #408
2011 – – 696 #407
2010 – – 699 #404
2009 – – 765 #394
2008 – – 817 #377
2007 – – 881 #359
2006 – – 909 #341
2005 – – 993 #325
2004 – – 1,019 #307
2003 – – 1,075 #289
2002 – – 1,201 #263
2001 – – 1,221 #268
2000 – – 1,312 #255
1995 – – 1,757 #180
1990 10 #8,337 3,143 #111
1985 36 #2,688 3,735 #84
1980 20 #3,953 3,563 #82
1975 20 #3,482 3,011 #85
1970 18 #3,536 3,520 #92
1965 10 #4,431 4,278 #87
1960 10 #4,384 5,509 #76
1955 12 #3,524 6,162 #62
1950 12 #3,188 6,070 #53
1945 13 #2,570 4,112 #58
1940 7 #3,772 3,674 #60
1935 5 #4,760 3,064 #65
1930 19 #1,920 2,655 #75
1925 10 #3,310 2,675 #75
1920 13 #2,700 2,700 #71
1915 9 #3,082 2,328 #69
1910 7 #2,097 418 #83
1905 – – 234 #96
1900 – – 259 #94
1895 – – 211 #92
1890 – – 192 #88
1885 – – 163 #89
1880 – – 186 #81

Famous people named Philip

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

  1. 1 Philip II of Spain Philip II of Spain King of Spain (1556–1598) and Portugal (1580–1598) 1527–1598 · 16th century
  2. 2 Philip K. Dick Philip K. Dick American science fiction author (1928–1982) Contemporary
  3. 3 Philip V of Spain Philip V of Spain King of Spain (r. 1700–1724; 1724–1746) 1683–1746 · 17th century
  4. 4 Philip II of Macedon Philip II of Macedon King of Macedon from 359 to 336 BC -382–-336 · Antiquity
  5. 5 Philip IV of Spain Philip IV of Spain King of Spain (1621–1665) and Portugal (1621–1640) 1605–1665 · 17th century
  6. 6 Philip Roth Philip Roth American novelist (1933–2018) Contemporary
  7. 7 Philip Glass Philip Glass American composer (born 1937) Contemporary
  8. 8 Philip IV of France Philip IV of France King of France from 1285 to 1314 1268–1314 · Medieval
  9. 9 Philip III of Spain Philip III of Spain King of Spain and Portugal from 1598 to 1621 1578–1621 · 16th century
  10. 10 Philip II of France Philip II of France King of France from 1180 to 1223 1165–1223 · Medieval
  11. 11 Philip the Arab Philip the Arab Roman emperor from 244 to 249 204–249 · Antiquity
  12. 12 Philip Larkin Philip Larkin English poet, novelist and librarian (1922–1985) Contemporary
  13. 13 Philip VI of France Philip VI of France Disputed King of France from 1328 to 1350 1293–1350 · Medieval
  14. 14 Philip the Apostle Philip the Apostle Apostle of Jesus 5–80 · Antiquity
  15. 15 Philip the Good Philip the Good Duke of Burgundy from 1419 to 1467 1396–1467 · Medieval
  16. 16 Philip I of France Philip I of France King of the Franks from 1060 to 1108 1052–1108 · Medieval
  17. 17 Philip Zimbardo Philip Zimbardo American social psychologist (1933–2024) Contemporary
  18. 18 Philip III of France Philip III of France King of France from 1270 to 1285 1245–1285 · Medieval
  19. 19 Philip III of Macedon Politician, Greece -359–-317 · Antiquity
  20. 20 Philip Neri Philip Neri Italian Roman Catholic saint 1515–1595 · 16th century

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Philip?

The median living Philip is about 57 years old. Half of all living Philips are between 39 and 70 years old.

How many people named Philip are alive today?

An estimated 216 thousand people named Philip are alive in the United States, based on 345,173 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Philip mean?

From Middle English Philip, ultimately from Ancient Greek Φίλιππος (Phílippos), name of ancient kings of Macedonia, from φίλιππος (phílippos, “fond of horses”), from φιλέω (philéō, “to love”) +‎ ἵππος (híppos, “horse”).

How popular is the name Philip in 2025?

Philip ranked #528 among boys' names in the United States in 2025, with 568 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Philip?

345,173 babies have been named Philip in the United States since 1880, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Philip most popular?

Philip peaked in 1953, when 6,288 newborns received the name.

Is Philip a boy or girl name?

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

Is the name Philip rising or falling?

Philip is declining, less popular now than a decade ago.

Will Philip become more popular?

Philip is trending downward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 529 boys named Philip 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 Philip?

Well-known people named Philip include Philip II of Spain (politician), Philip K. Dick (writer), Philip V of Spain (politician).

Names like Philip

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

Compare Philip with similar names → More names starting with P →