Boy · #2,238 in 2026

Earl

Name: Popularity of the name Earl in U.S. births, 1880–2026
Creator: U.S. Social Security Administration
License: https://www.ssa.gov/foia/
Keywords: Earl, baby name, popularity, U.S., SSA, rankings

Earl is an English given name, predominantly popular in North America, meaning "warrior" or "nobleman" and derived from the rank of nobility of the same name. Instances of its use as a given name date back to 12th-century England. Some of the holders of this name are:

Current Rank

#2,238

Peak Rank

#20 (1921)

Total Babies

289K

5-Yr Trend

-28%

1881

First Year

1988

Last Year

1930

Peak Year

#831

Peak Rank

Total Count

Years Active

Meaning & Origin of Earl

What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.

Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →

The Story of Earl

Earl first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a baby boy name in 1880, with 335 babies given the name that year. Its peak popularity came in 1921, when 6,754 Earls were born — ranking #31 that year. As of 2026, Earl ranks #2,238 for baby boys with 65 births, falling sharply (-28%). In total, more than 289K Earls have been born in the U.S. since records began in 1880, spanning the 1880s through the 2020s.

Popularity Over Time

Popularity by State

Top 10

11-50

51-100

101-500

500+

No data

Names that sound like Earl

Phonetically similar names — useful when Earl is the vibe but a different syllable count or letter feel might suit better. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.

Irl
Url
Erl
Earle
Rll
Erll
Earll
Irle
Wrng
Rng
Are
Curl

Source: Datamuse . Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated.

Frequently Asked Questions about Earl

What does the name Earl mean?

How popular is Earl in 2026?

In 2026, Earl ranks #2,238 among boys' names in the U.S., with 65 babies given the name that year.

When was Earl most popular?

Earl reached its peak popularity in 1921, ranking #20 that year with 6,754 babies given the name.

In which U.S. states is Earl most popular?

Earl has historically been most popular in Utah, Idaho, Kentucky. Rankings vary year to year, but these states show the strongest concentration of births named Earl.

Is Earl a unisex name?

In U.S. Social Security records, Earl is primarily a boy's name. We don't have meaningful data for it as a girl's name.

What names go well with Earl?

Names that share a similar style or popularity range with Earl include Joe, Charlie, Eugene. These pairings are based on rank proximity and naming era in U.S. data.

About the name Earl

Earl is a boy baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1880 and has accumulated 289K births in the dataset. Earl's peak popularity came in 1921 when it ranked #20. Use the chart and map above to compare Earl's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.

Continue exploring

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.