How popular is the baby name John in the United States right now? How popular was it historically? Use the popularity graph and data table below to find out! Plus, see all the blog posts that mention the name John.

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Popularity of the baby name John


Posts that mention the name John

Where did the baby name Sturgill come from in 2017?

Country music singer Sturgill Simpson
Sturgill Simpson

The rare name Sturgill first appeared in the U.S. baby name data in 2017:

  • 2019: unlisted
  • 2018: unlisted
  • 2017: 6 baby boys named Sturgill [debut]
  • 2016: unlisted
  • 2015: unlisted

Where did it come from?

Kentucky-born singer-songwriter Sturgill (pronounced STUR-jil) Simpson, who is “typically classified as a country artist in the outlaw tradition.”

His singles — which include a cover of Nirvana’s “In Bloom” [vid] — have never topped the country charts. But his third album, A Sailor’s Guide To Earth (2016), did win a Grammy Award for Best Country Album in early 2017.

Interestingly, Sturgill Simpson (whose full name is John Sturgill Simpson) has since distanced himself from “Sturgill.” He now goes by the stage name Johnny Blue Skies. In mid-2024 he explained,

I got to this point where, I don’t know, like, I kind of wanted my name back for myself. I felt like my identity had just become a brand. (…) And then I realized I was always a big fan of the Derek and The Dominos record. And I thought that was a really neat concept that he hid behind a character to make a very vulnerable rock and roll record of love songs. And I don’t know if he would have done it with his name on it.

(Eric Clapton’s short-lived blues-rock band Derek and the Dominos put out a single album, Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs, in late 1970.)

What are your thoughts on Sturgill as a first name?

Sources:

Image: Adapted from Sturgill Simpson photo 2016 by Atlantic Records under CC BY-SA 4.0.

What gave the baby name Brenton a boost in 1984?

The character Philadelphia Gordon from the TV miniseries "All the Rivers Run" (1983)
Philadelphia Gordon from “All the Rivers Run“

In October of 1983, the miniseries All the Rivers Run premiered on Australian television.

The program’s main character, a free-spirited young Englishwoman named Philadelphia “Delie” Gordon (played by Sigrid Thornton), was orphaned in a shipwreck off the coast of Victoria in 1892. She was taken in by extended family living near Echuca, a port town on the Murray River, and eventually began a relationship with a paddle-steamer captain named Brenton Edwards (played by John Waters).

All the Rivers Run proved very popular and, as a result, many expectant parents in Australia decided to name their baby boys Brenton in the mid-1980s. The name reached peak usage in both in New South Wales and Queensland, for instance, in 1984.

Rank of Brenton in NSWRank of Breton in Qld.
1986.71st (56 boys)
198599th (71 boys)70th (60 boys)
198466th*† (122 boys)54th*† (86 boys)
1983..
1982..
*Debut in boys’ top 100, †Peak usage

Actor John Waters remembers meeting young boys named Brenton. He said,

The fact that [Brenton Edwards] was a popular character and the name was also new to people was probably one of those deciding factors — “I’ll call my kid Brenton, he’ll be the only one in his class.” Little did they know there’d be five of them.

The character Brenton Edwards from the TV miniseries "All the Rivers Run" (1983)
Brenton Edwards from “All the Rivers Run“

In January of 1984, several months after its initial broadcast, All the Rivers Run aired in the United States.

The miniseries had a similar effect upon expectant parents in America; the name Brenton more than tripled in usage nationally in 1984, and the name Philadelphia appeared for the first time in the U.S. baby name data the same year.

Boys named BrentonGirls named Philadelphia
1986601 (rank: 330th)5
1985603 (rank: 328th)5
1984799 (rank: 260th)†8*
1983250 (rank: 527th).
1982255 (rank: 534th).
*Debut, †Peak usage

Brenton, a Cornish surname, can be traced back to any of various place names, all of which derive from Bryningtun, meaning “settlement associated with Bryni” in Old English. Byrni, a personal name, is based on the word bryne, meaning “burning, fire.”

(Interestingly, while Brenton became a top-100 name for the first time in several regions of Australia in the mid-1980s, it had long been been a top-100 name in South Australia specifically. Why? Likely because of the relatively high number of Cornish Australians in South Australia.)

Philadelphia Gordon’s first name was inspired by the U.S. city of Philadelphia. In the 1958 novel upon which the TV miniseries was based, Delie explained: “Father was always planning to go to the States, before he ever thought of Australia.”

Sources:

Images: Screenshots of All the Rivers Run

How did Lyndon B. Johnson influence baby names?

American politician Lyndon B. Johnson (1908-1973)
Lyndon B. Johnson

Texas-born politician Lyndon B. Johnson, who served as president of the United States from late 1963 to early 1969, influenced the popularity of the baby name Lyndon several times over the course of his life.

In 1941, the year he narrowly lost a U.S. Senate special election in Texas, the name Lyndon nearly doubled in usage:

Boys named Lyndon (U.S.)Boys named Lyndon (TX)
1943102 (rank: 632nd)21
194278 (rank: 729th)22
194190 (rank: 645th)43
194046 (rank: 947th)8
193941 (rank: 1,000th)6

As you’d expect, most of that extra usage happened in the state of Texas.

In 1948, on his second try, Johnson narrowly won a seat in the U.S. Senate. (The unique first name of his opponent, Coke R. Stevenson, made its last appearance in the U.S. baby name data the same year.)

More than a decade later, when Senator Johnson was elected vice president as John F. Kennedy‘s running mate, the name saw another uptick:

  • 1962: 148 baby boys named Lyndon (rank: 635th)
  • 1961: 207 baby boys named Lyndon (rank: 548th)
  • 1960: 246 baby boys named Lyndon (rank: 506th)
  • 1959: 193 baby boys named Lyndon (rank: 559th)
  • 1958: 161 baby boys named Lyndon (rank: 606th)

Finally, in 1964, the name shot to peak popularity:

  • 1966: 161 baby boys named Lyndon (rank: 592nd)
  • 1965: 306 baby boys named Lyndon (rank: 444th)
  • 1964: 514 baby boys named Lyndon (rank: 347th)
  • 1963: 176 baby boys named Lyndon (rank: 594th)
  • 1962: 148 baby boys named Lyndon (rank: 635th)

Here’s a visual:

Graph of the usage of the baby name Lyndon in the U.S. since 1880
Usage of the baby name Lyndon

This considerable increase in usage can be attributed to a pair of related events: Johnson assuming the presidency upon the assassination of Kennedy in November of 1963, and Johnson’s landslide victory in the presidential election of 1964.

Lyndon B. Johnson taking the oath of office following the assassination of President Kennedy (Nov. 1963)
Lyndon B. Johnson taking the oath of office

Lyndon Baines Johnson was born to Samuel Ealy Johnson, Jr., and Rebekah Johnson (née Baines) in 1908. Where did his first name come from? Here’s how he told the story:

I was three months old when I was named. My mother and father couldn’t agree on a name. The people my father liked were heavy drinkers — pretty rough for a city girl. She didn’t want me named after any of them.

Finally, there was a criminal lawyer — a county lawyer — named W. C. Linden. He would go on a drunk for a week after every case. My father liked him, and he wanted to name me after him. My mother didn’t care for the idea, but she said finally that it was all right; she would go along with it if she could spell the name the way she wanted to. So that was what happened.

Johnson’s two daughters, Lynda and Luci, were both married during their father’s presidency. The younger one, Luci, married in August of 1966 and the older one, Lynda, married in December of 1967. (Luci had a flower girl named Bader; Lynda had a bridesmaid called Trenny.)

What are your thoughts on the name Lyndon? (What spelling do you prefer?)

Sources:

Images: Adapted from Lyndon B. Johnson, photo portrait, leaning on chair, color and Lyndon B. Johnson taking the oath of office (both public domain)

Preliminary 2025 baby name rankings for five U.S. states

peeking nun

We won’t have access to the federal government’s next batch of baby name data until May, but five U.S. states — Arizona, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, and Rhode Island — have released preliminary rankings for 2025. Let’s check them out, starting in the east and moving westward…

Rhode Island

According to the Rhode Island Department of Health, these were the state’s top 10 girl names and top 10 boy names in 2025.

Top girl names, RITop boy names, RI
1. Charlotte
2. Olivia
3. Amelia
4. Isabella
5. Sophia
6. Aurora
7. Ava
8. Maeve
9. Nora
10. Isla		1. Noah
2. Liam
3. Oliver
4. Theodore
5. Benjamin
6. Luca
7. Lucas
8. Henry
9. John
10. Jack

Mississippi

According to the Mississippi State Department of Health, these were the state’s top 10 girl names and top 10 boy names in 2025.

Top girl names, MSTop boy names, MS
1. Amelia
2. Charlotte
3. Olivia
4. Ava
5. Elizabeth
6. Mary
7. Ivy
8. Nova
9. Emma & Lainey (tie)
10. Ellie		1. James
2. William
3. John
4. Noah
5. Elijah
6. Liam
7. Waylon
8. Hudson
9. Henry
10. Levi

Louisiana

According to the Louisiana Department of Health, these were the state’s top 10 girl names and top 10 boy names in 2025.

Top girl names, LATop boy names, LA
1. Amelia
2. Charlotte
3. Olivia
4. Emma
5. Eleanor
6. Harper
7. Sophia
8. Evelyn
9. Ellie
10. Nova		1. Noah
2. Liam
3. James
4. John
5. Elijah
6. Oliver
7. William
8. Hudson
9. Joseph
10. Henry

New Mexico

According to the New Mexico Department of Health, these were the state’s top 10 girl names and top 10 boy names in 2025.

Top girl names, NMTop boy names, NM
1. Olivia
2. Mia
3. Sophia
4. Sofia
5. Camila
6. Eliana
7. Amelia
8. Isabella
9. Aurora
10. Aria		1. Noah
2. Liam
3. Mateo
4. Elijah
5. Santiago
6. Sebastian
7. Ezra
8. Elias
9. Levi
10. Ezekiel

Arizona

According to the Arizona Department of Health Services, these were the state’s top 10 girl names and top 10 boy names in 2025.

Top girl names, AZTop boy names, AZ
1. Olivia
2. Sophia
3. Mia
4. Isabella
5. Emma
6. Amelia
7. Charlotte
8. Eliana
9. Camila
10. Sofia		1. Noah
2. Liam
3. Mateo
4. Santiago
5. Oliver
6. Elias
7. Elijah
8. Theodore
9. Sebastian
10. Ezra

See anything interesting/unexpected so far?

Sources:

Image: Adapted from A trompe l’œil with a young nun peeking out through a shutter (public domain)