boys' name ★ peaked 2025

Sonny

Meaning A male given name from English Gender Boy · 4% girls Rank 2025 #298 Trend ↑ Rising 142%

A male given name from English.

Rank 2025
#298
among boys · ↑38 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
1,192
named Sonny · +8% vs 2024
How common
1 in 1,502
boys born in 2025
Peak year
2025
1,192 babies
All-time total
23,356
#786 all-time among boys
First recorded
1888
in Social Security records

Sonny popularity over time

23,356 babies have been named Sonny since 1888, 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
0.190.380.560.7518801900192019401960198020002020BoysGirls
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 – 7 7 1 – #906
1890s – 32 32 3 +357% #1,068
1900s – 87 87 9 +172% #680
1910s – 183 183 18 +110% #920
1920s – 386 386 39 +111% #719
1930s – 1,084 1,084 108 +181% #469
1940s 6 1,201 1,207 121 +11% #523
1950s 24 1,309 1,333 133 +10% #599
1960s 17 1,413 1,430 143 +7% #586
1970s 69 2,517 2,586 259 +81% #428
1980s 121 2,288 2,409 241 -7% #540
1990s 123 1,838 1,961 196 -19% #651
2000s 104 2,232 2,336 234 +19% #766
2010s 232 2,806 3,038 304 +30% #644
2020s (to 2025) 333 4,944 5,277 880 +189% #298

Where Sonny 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 1,320 0.77 #262
2027 1,499 0.88 #235
2028 1,670 0.98 #207
2029 1,830 1.07 #197
2030 1,978 1.16 #186

Where Sonny is most popular

Boys named Sonny per 1,000 boys born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.511 per 1,000. Strongest in Hawaii, Rhode Island, and Maine.

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 Sonny 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
Hawaii 30 1.93 +278%
Rhode Island 23 1.41 +176%
Maine 21 1.08 +112%
Oregon 80 1.05 +106%
Utah 98 1.03 +101%
Minnesota 119 0.970 +90%
Nevada 52 0.912 +78%
South Dakota 16 0.860 +68%
Wisconsin 100 0.844 +65%
North Dakota 14 0.820 +60%
Iowa 56 0.812 +59%
Massachusetts 108 0.785 +54%
Arizona 128 0.782 +53%
California 676 0.740 +45%
Montana 13 0.737 +44%
Missouri 101 0.729 +42%
Nebraska 31 0.713 +39%
Ohio 188 0.709 +39%
Idaho 29 0.709 +39%
Michigan 145 0.708 +38%
Colorado 90 0.697 +36%
Connecticut 47 0.694 +36%
New Hampshire 15 0.676 +32%
New Jersey 133 0.661 +29%
New York 276 0.637 +25%
Oklahoma 55 0.622 +22%
Washington 99 0.605 +18%
Arkansas 37 0.585 +14%
Pennsylvania 154 0.580 +13%
Illinois 145 0.567 +11%
Louisiana 54 0.528 ≈ national
Tennessee 95 0.526 ≈ national
Indiana 79 0.493 ≈ national
Kentucky 46 0.458 -10%
New Mexico 15 0.455 -11%
West Virginia 14 0.429 -16%
Maryland 51 0.428 -16%
South Carolina 42 0.406 -21%
Texas 353 0.401 -22%
Florida 175 0.370 -28%
Virginia 67 0.353 -31%
North Carolina 86 0.337 -34%
Alabama 29 0.265 -48%
Kansas 18 0.262 -49%
Georgia 65 0.257 -50%
Mississippi 11 0.194 -62%
Alaska – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Vermont – – –
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 Sonny

Sonny is moderately common for boys in the United States, ranked #298 in 2025 with 1,137 babies given the name. It is currently rising compared with a decade ago.

Since 1888, 23,356 American babies have been named Sonny. Its peak came in 2025, when 1,192 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 Sonny stood among all boys' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Sonny?

The median living Sonny is about 23 years old; half are between 5 and 47. An estimated 20 thousand people named Sonny are alive in the United States today.

median 23 020406080100

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

Sonny 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 55 #3,022 1,137 #298
2024 62 #2,769 1,037 #336
2023 66 #2,669 929 #354
2022 49 #3,309 725 #428
2021 53 #3,106 589 #498
2020 48 #3,273 527 #536
2019 37 #3,995 417 #644
2018 33 #4,343 382 #663
2017 30 #4,684 303 #774
2016 18 #6,871 268 #843
2015 26 #5,276 275 #825
2014 16 #7,595 243 #890
2013 13 #8,979 252 #848
2012 19 #6,838 222 #927
2011 22 #6,122 232 #892
2010 18 #7,181 212 #948
2009 12 #9,909 248 #860
2008 11 #10,710 247 #864
2007 9 #12,551 240 #867
2006 12 #9,835 225 #878
2005 9 #11,721 241 #799
2004 10 #10,582 212 #841
2003 10 #10,341 231 #766
2002 11 #9,404 209 #813
2001 9 #10,911 196 #832
2000 11 #9,082 183 #868
1995 8 #10,397 185 #791
1990 13 #6,825 241 #651
1985 9 #7,477 199 #623
1980 14 #5,207 221 #578
1975 9 #6,394 336 #428
1970 – – 192 #585
1965 – – 123 #671
1960 5 #7,170 145 #647
1955 5 #6,604 125 #658
1950 – – 120 #632
1945 – – 99 #609
1940 – – 111 #563
1935 – – 147 #469
1930 – – 92 #642
1925 – – 35 #1,220
1920 – – 27 #1,455
1915 – – 17 #1,773
1910 – – 9 #1,185
1905 – – 8 #990
1900 – – 13 #728
1895 – – 6 #1,068
1890 – – – –
1885 – – – –
1880 – – – –

Famous people named Sonny

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

  1. 1 Sonny Liston Sonny Liston American boxer (c. 1930–1970) 1932–1970 · Contemporary
  2. 2 Sonny Rollins Sonny Rollins American jazz saxophonist and composer (1930–2026) Contemporary
  3. 3 Sonny Chiba Sonny Chiba Japanese actor and martial artist (1939–2021) Contemporary
  4. 4 Sonny Bill Williams Sonny Bill Williams New Zealand dual-code international rugby footballer b. 1985 · Contemporary
  5. 5 Sonny Perdue Sonny Perdue American politician (born 1946) Contemporary
  6. 6 Sonny Boy Williamson II Sonny Boy Williamson II American blues musician (1912–1965) Contemporary
  7. 7 Sonny Anderson Sonny Anderson Brazilian footballer (born 1970) Contemporary
  8. 8 Sonny Stitt Sonny Stitt American saxophonist (1924–1982) Contemporary
  9. 9 Sonny Clark Sonny Clark American jazz pianist (1931–1963) Contemporary
  10. 10 Sonny Boy Williamson I Sonny Boy Williamson I American blues musician (1914–1948) Contemporary
  11. 11 Sonny Weems Sonny Weems American basketball player b. 1986 · Contemporary
  12. 12 Sonny Terry Sonny Terry American blues harmonica player and vocalist (1911–1986) Contemporary
  13. 13 Sonny Carter Sonny Carter American astronaut, chemist, and U.S. Navy officer (1947–1991) Contemporary
  14. 14 Sonny Colbrelli Sonny Colbrelli Italian road racing cyclist b. 1990 · Contemporary
  15. 15 Sonny Fortune Sonny Fortune American jazz saxophonist (1939–2018) Contemporary
  16. 16 Sonny Kittel Sonny Kittel German-Polish footballer (born 1993) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Sonny?

The median living Sonny is about 23 years old. Half of all living Sonnys are between 5 and 47 years old.

How many people named Sonny are alive today?

An estimated 20 thousand people named Sonny are alive in the United States, based on 23,356 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Sonny mean?

A male given name from English.

How popular is the name Sonny in 2025?

Sonny ranked #298 among boys' names in the United States in 2025, with 1,137 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Sonny?

23,356 babies have been named Sonny in the United States since 1888, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Sonny most popular?

Sonny peaked in 2025, when 1,192 newborns received the name.

Is Sonny a boy or girl name?

Sonny is overwhelmingly a boy's name: 96% of babies with the name.

Is the name Sonny rising or falling?

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

Will Sonny become more popular?

Sonny is trending upward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 1,978 boys named Sonny in 2030, which would rank around #186. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Sonny?

Well-known people named Sonny include Sonny Liston (boxer), Sonny Rollins (musician), Sonny Chiba (actor).

Names like Sonny

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

Compare Sonny with similar names → More names starting with S →