Chess
Chess is a board game for two players, played on a square board consisting of 64 squares arranged in an 8×8 grid. The players, referred to as "White" and "Black", each control sixteen pieces: one king, one queen, two rooks, two bishops, two knights, and eight pawns, with each piece type having a different pattern of movement.
Meaning & Origin of Chess
What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.
Chess is a board game for two players, played on a square board consisting of 64 squares arranged in an 8×8 grid. The players, referred to as "White" and "Black", each control sixteen pieces: one king, one queen, two rooks, two bishops, two knights, and eight pawns, with each piece type having a different pattern of movement.
Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →
Origin & history
The Story of Chess
Chess first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a baby boy name in 1915, with 5 babies given the name that year. Its peak popularity came in 1953, when 8 Chesss were born — ranking #2,905 that year. As of 2026, Chess ranks #12,015 for baby boys with 5 births, with steady use. In total, more than 29 Chesss have been born in the U.S. since records began in 1880, spanning the 1910s through the 2020s.
Popularity Over Time
Popularity by State
Names that sound like Chess
Phonetically similar names — useful when Chess is the vibe but a different syllable count or letter feel might suit better. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.
Source: Datamuse . Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated.
Frequently Asked Questions about Chess
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About the name Chess
Chess is a boy baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1915 and has accumulated 29 births in the dataset. Chess's peak popularity came in 1953 when it ranked #2,905. Use the chart and map above to compare Chess's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.
Continue exploring
- Top names of 1953 →
- Names of the 1950s →
- Names starting with "C" →
- 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.