ESC Name Rank Total Searching... No names found Try searching for: Emma, Liam, Olivia, Noah... 1883 First Year 2026 Last Year 2018 Peak Year #679 Peak Rank 476 Total Count 36 Years Active 🌍 ## Meaning & Origin of Captain What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures. Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, etc. Source: [Wikipedia ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Captain) (CC BY-SA 3.0). [Read more → ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Captain) 📜Etymology The word "captain" derives from the Middle English "capitane", from Anglo-French "capitain", itself coming from the Latin "caput", meaning "head". It is considered cognate with the Greek word katepánō ( Ancient Greek : κατεπάνω , literal translation"}\]\],"parts":\[{"template":{"target":{"wt":"literally","href":"./Template:Literally"},"params":{"1":{"wt":"\[the one placed\] at the top"}},"i":0}}\]}' id="mwIA">lit. ' \[the one placed\] at the top ' , or "the topmost"), which was used as title for a senior Byzantine military rank and office. \[ page needed \] The word was Latinized as Ancient Greek [![Wikipedia thumbnail for Captain](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/41/Captain_on_ship.jpg/330px-Captain_on_ship.jpg)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Captain) 📖 ## The Story of Captain American parents first put Captain on the record books as a baby boy name in 1883, with 5 registered babies. Its peak popularity came in 2018, when 33 Captains were born — ranking #3,372 that year. The 2010s were its strongest decade, accounting for roughly 50% of all recorded Captains. In the latest 2026 data it stands at #6,085 among baby boy names with 14 births, falling sharply (-31%). In total, more than 476 Captains have been born in the U.S. since records began in 1880, spanning the 1880s through the 2020s. ## Popularity Over Time ## Popularity by State ME WA MT ND MN WI MI NY VT NH MA OR ID SD IA IL IN OH PA NJ CT RI CA NV WY NE MO KY WV VA MD DE DC UT CO KS AR TN NC SC AK AZ NM OK LA MS AL GA HI TX FL Top 10 11-50 51-100 101-500 500+ No data 🎶 ## Names that sound like Captain Phonetically similar names — useful when Captain is the vibe but a different syllable count or letter feel might suit better. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name. * Captan * Kapton * Captin * Caption * Captains * Clapton * Capitan * [Caton](/caton) * Capetown * [Campton](/campton) * Capstan * Catton Source: [Datamuse ](https://www.datamuse.com/api/). Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated. ❓ ## Frequently Asked Questions about Captain What does the name Captain mean? Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, etc. How popular is Captain in 2026? In 2026, Captain ranks #6,085 among boys' names in the U.S., with 14 babies given the name that year. When was Captain most popular? Captain reached its peak popularity in 2018, ranking #679 that year with 33 babies given the name. In which U.S. states is Captain most popular? Captain has historically been most popular in California, Texas. Rankings vary year to year, but these states show the strongest concentration of births named Captain. Is Captain a unisex name? In U.S. Social Security records, Captain is primarily a boy's name. We don't have meaningful data for it as a girl's name. What names go well with Captain? Names that share a similar style or popularity range with Captain include Norval, Thompson, Vander. These pairings are based on rank proximity and naming era in U.S. data. ## Similar Names [👦NorvalPeak #679](/norval)[👦ThompsonPeak #679](/thompson)[👦VanderPeak #679](/vander)[👦ArmondPeak #679](/armond)[👦FrazierPeak #679](/frazier)[👦AlfonzoPeak #679](/alfonzo)[👦MalePeak #679](/male)[👦AxlPeak #679](/axl) ## About the name Captain Captain is a boy baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1883 and has accumulated 476 births in the dataset. Captain's peak popularity came in 2018 when it ranked #679\. Use the chart and map above to compare Captain's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices. ### Continue exploring * [ Top names of 2018 → ](/year/2018) * [ Names of the 2010s → ](/decade/2010s) * [ Names starting with "C" → ](/letter/c) * [ Browse all boy names → ](/names/boys) * [ Top names of 2026 → ](/year/2026) Data sources * Birth statistics (counts, ranks, years 1880–2026) — U.S. [Social Security Administration ](https://www.ssa.gov/oact/babynames/). 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 ](https://www.behindthename.com/) (used under their public API terms). * Meaning prose and editorial summary — [Wikipedia ](https://en.wikipedia.org/) article extracts, licensed under [CC BY-SA 3.0 ](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/). * Predicted nationality distribution — [Nationalize.io ](https://nationalize.io/). * Phonetically similar names — [Datamuse ](https://www.datamuse.com/api/). 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.