boys' name ★ peaked 1920

Wilmer

Meaning famous Gender Boy · 4% girls Rank 2025 #1,742 Trend ↑ Rising 15%

From Old English willa (“mind, will, determination, purpose, desire, wish”) + mǣre (“famous”), from Proto-Germanic *Wiljamērijaz, from *wiljô +‎ *mērijaz.

Rank 2025
#1,742
among boys · ↑112 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
94
named Wilmer · +7% vs 2024
How common
1 in 18,171
boys born in 2025
Peak year
1920
473 babies
All-time total
16,722
#938 all-time among boys
First recorded
1880
in Social Security records

Wilmer popularity over time

16,722 babies have been named Wilmer 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
0.130.250.380.518801900192019401960198020002020BoysGirls
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 – 163 163 16 – #401
1890s – 218 218 22 +34% #340
1900s 33 365 398 40 +83% #317
1910s 178 2,434 2,612 261 +556% #256
1920s 246 3,525 3,771 377 +44% #259
1930s 151 2,073 2,224 222 -41% #335
1940s 102 1,454 1,556 156 -30% #454
1950s 33 912 945 95 -39% #658
1960s – 601 601 60 -36% #866
1970s – 365 365 37 -39% #1,206
1980s – 407 407 41 +12% #1,271
1990s – 636 636 64 +56% #1,320
2000s – 1,241 1,241 124 +95% #1,069
2010s – 997 997 100 -20% #1,371
2020s (to 2025) – 588 588 98 -2% #1,537

Where Wilmer 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 95 0.06 outside top 500
2027 96 0.06 outside top 500
2028 97 0.06 outside top 500
2029 98 0.06 outside top 500
2030 99 0.06 outside top 500

Where Wilmer is most popular

Boys named Wilmer per 1,000 boys born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.059 per 1,000. Strongest in Tennessee, Virginia, and Pennsylvania.

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 Wilmer 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
Tennessee 18 0.100 +68%
Virginia 18 0.095 +60%
Pennsylvania 24 0.090 +52%
New Jersey 16 0.079 +34%
Georgia 18 0.071 +20%
New York 30 0.069 +17%
Florida 30 0.063 +7%
Texas 52 0.059 ≈ national
North Carolina 15 0.059 ≈ national
California 50 0.055 -8%
Wisconsin 5 0.042 -29%
Maryland 5 0.042 -29%
Indiana 5 0.031 -47%
Alaska – – –
Alabama – – –
Arkansas – – –
Arizona – – –
Colorado – – –
Connecticut – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Hawaii – – –
Iowa – – –
Idaho – – –
Illinois – – –
Kansas – – –
Kentucky – – –
Louisiana – – –
Massachusetts – – –
Maine – – –
Michigan – – –
Minnesota – – –
Missouri – – –
Mississippi – – –
Montana – – –
North Dakota – – –
Nebraska – – –
New Hampshire – – –
New Mexico – – –
Nevada – – –
Ohio – – –
Oklahoma – – –
Oregon – – –
Rhode Island – – –
South Carolina – – –
South Dakota – – –
Utah – – –
Vermont – – –
Washington – – –
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 Wilmer

Wilmer is rare for boys in the United States, ranked #1,742 in 2025 with 94 babies given the name. It is currently holding steady compared with a decade ago.

Since 1880, 16,722 American babies have been named Wilmer. Its peak came in 1920, when 473 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 1920s.

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

How old are people named Wilmer?

The median living Wilmer is about 33 years old; half are between 16 and 69. An estimated 6,500 people named Wilmer are alive in the United States today.

median 33 020406080100

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

Wilmer 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 – – 94 #1,742
2024 – – 88 #1,854
2023 – – 115 #1,537
2022 – – 109 #1,610
2021 – – 106 #1,613
2020 – – 76 #1,935
2019 – – 95 #1,688
2018 – – 96 #1,670
2017 – – 82 #1,826
2016 – – 108 #1,547
2015 – – 103 #1,579
2014 – – 99 #1,596
2013 – – 88 #1,693
2012 – – 94 #1,656
2011 – – 108 #1,502
2010 – – 124 #1,371
2009 – – 135 #1,303
2008 – – 120 #1,413
2007 – – 175 #1,069
2006 – – 149 #1,143
2005 – – 137 #1,169
2004 – – 116 #1,291
2003 – – 100 #1,363
2002 – – 101 #1,325
2001 – – 113 #1,202
2000 – – 95 #1,352
1995 – – 62 #1,548
1990 – – 50 #1,661
1985 – – 46 #1,483
1980 – – 31 #1,850
1975 – – 36 #1,504
1970 – – 48 #1,206
1965 – – 47 #1,093
1960 – – 71 #904
1955 – – 105 #714
1950 10 #3,660 93 #715
1945 8 #3,673 115 #562
1940 11 #2,733 158 #461
1935 17 #2,004 194 #394
1930 18 #2,020 265 #347
1925 24 #1,792 356 #302
1920 30 #1,510 443 #259
1915 24 #1,522 352 #256
1910 12 #1,418 56 #331
1905 6 #1,924 37 #336
1900 9 #1,428 43 #329
1895 – – 27 #367
1890 – – 15 #510
1885 – – 16 #479
1880 – – 19 #401

Famous people named Wilmer

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

  1. 1 Wilmer Valderrama Wilmer Valderrama Venezuelan-American actor (born 1980) Contemporary
  2. 2 Wilmer Allison American tennis player (1904–1977) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Wilmer?

The median living Wilmer is about 33 years old. Half of all living Wilmers are between 16 and 69 years old.

How many people named Wilmer are alive today?

An estimated 6,500 people named Wilmer are alive in the United States, based on 16,722 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Wilmer mean?

From Old English willa (“mind, will, determination, purpose, desire, wish”) + mǣre (“famous”), from Proto-Germanic *Wiljamērijaz, from *wiljô +‎ *mērijaz.

How popular is the name Wilmer in 2025?

Wilmer ranked #1,742 among boys' names in the United States in 2025, with 94 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Wilmer?

16,722 babies have been named Wilmer in the United States since 1880, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Wilmer most popular?

Wilmer peaked in 1920, when 473 newborns received the name.

Is Wilmer a boy or girl name?

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

Is the name Wilmer rising or falling?

Wilmer has been roughly stable over the past decade.

Will Wilmer become more popular?

Wilmer looks stable. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 99 boys named Wilmer in 2030, ranking outside the top 500. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Wilmer?

Well-known people named Wilmer include Wilmer Valderrama (actor), Wilmer Allison (tennis player).

Names like Wilmer

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

Compare Wilmer with similar names → More names starting with W →