Bates
Bates is a common surname of English origin and is derived from the name Bartholomew. The name could also originate from the Old English "Bat", meaning "Boat", as used to identify a person whose occupation was boatman. Another origin is that which means "lush pasture", describing someone who lived near such a place.
Meaning & Origin of Bates
What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.
Bates is a common surname of English origin and is derived from the name Bartholomew. The name could also originate from the Old English "Bat", meaning "Boat", as used to identify a person whose occupation was boatman. Another origin is that which means "lush pasture", describing someone who lived near such a place.
Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →
The Story of Bates
Bates first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a baby boy name in 1919, with 6 babies given the name that year. The name hit its high-water mark in 2014: 17 births, good for #5,251 nationwide. About 44% of every Bates on record arrived during the 2010s, its defining decade. Bates last appeared in the published SSA data in 2023, with 10 recorded births — it has not charted nationally since. All told, over 151 Americans have carried the name since 1880, from the 1910s to the 2020s.
Popularity Over Time
Popularity by State
Names that sound like Bates
Phonetically similar names — useful when Bates is the vibe but a different syllable count or letter feel might suit better. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.
- Baits
- Beats
- Boots
- Bits
- Boats
- Bites
- Bats
- Bets
- Butts
- Buts
- Bots
- Beets
Source: Datamuse . Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated.
Frequently Asked Questions about Bates
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About the name Bates
Bates is a boy baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1919 and has accumulated 151 births in the dataset. Bates's peak popularity came in 2014 when it ranked #5,251. Use the chart and map above to compare Bates's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.
Continue exploring
- Top names of 2014 →
- Names of the 2010s →
- Names starting with "B" →
- Browse all boy names →
- Top names of 2026 →
Data sources
- Birth statistics (counts, ranks, years 1880–2026) — U.S. Social Security Administration . Predictions for years not yet released by SSA are computed by Peek a Name from historical trends; we update with official data as soon as it ships.
- Etymology, cultural origins, and related forms — Behind the Name (used under their public API terms).
- Meaning prose and editorial summary — Wikipedia article extracts, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 .
- Predicted nationality distribution — Nationalize.io .
- Phonetically similar names — Datamuse .
Peek a Name aggregates and presents the above data for informational purposes. Statistical predictions and external attributions are clearly labelled where shown; we make no guarantee of accuracy beyond what each source provides.