Boy · #12,551 in 2026

Mead

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

Mead, also called honey wine, and hydromel, is an alcoholic beverage made by fermenting honey mixed with water, and sometimes with added ingredients such as fruits, spices, grains, or hops. The alcoholic content ranges from about 3.5% ABV to more than 20%.

Current Rank

#12,551

Peak Rank

#3,368 (1918)

Total Babies

118

5-Yr Trend

Stable

1915

First Year

2008

Last Year

1918

Peak Year

#3368

Peak Rank

118

Total Count

Years Active

Meaning & Origin of Mead

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

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

Etymology

The English mead – "fermented honey drink" – derives from the Old English meodu or medu , and Proto-Indo-European language , * médʰu . Its cognates include Old Norse mjǫðr , Proto-Slavic medъ , Middle Dutch mede , and Old High German metu , Sanskrit madhu and the ancient Irish queen Medb , among others. The Chinese word for honey, mì (蜜) is from the word mit , which was borrowed from the extinct Indo-European Tocharian B – and is also cognate with the English word mead .

Origin & history

Mead was possibly discovered among the first humans 20,000–40,000 years ago prior to the advent of both agriculture and ceramic pottery in the Neolithic , due to the prevalence of naturally occurring fermentation and the distribution of eusocial honey-producing insects worldwide; as a result, it is hard to pinpoint the exact historical origin of mead given the possibility of multiple discovery or potential knowledge transfer between early humans prior to recorded history. With the eventual rise of ceramic pottery and increasing use of fermentation in food processing to preserve surplus agricul

The Story of Mead

The earliest SSA record of Mead as a baby boy name dates back to 1915, when 5 babies received it. 1918 was its biggest year on record, with 7 newborns named Mead — #3,368 in the national rankings. Mead last appeared in the published SSA data in 2008, with 5 recorded births — it has not charted nationally since. All told, over 118 Americans have carried the name since 1880, from the 1910s to the 2020s.

Popularity Over Time

Popularity by State

Top 10

11-50

51-100

101-500

500+

No data

Names that sound like Mead

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

Meed
Meade
Mede
Mied
Meid
Made
Mad
Meet
Meat
Mode
Maid
Mid

Source: Datamuse . Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated.

Frequently Asked Questions about Mead

What does the name Mead mean?

How popular is Mead in 2026?

In 2026, Mead ranks #12,551 among boys' names in the U.S., with 5 babies given the name that year.

When was Mead most popular?

Mead reached its peak popularity in 1918, ranking #3,368 that year with 7 babies given the name.

Is Mead a unisex name?

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

What names go well with Mead?

Names that share a similar style or popularity range with Mead include Ham, Opha, Slim. These pairings are based on rank proximity and naming era in U.S. data.

About the name Mead

Mead is a boy baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1915 and has accumulated 118 births in the dataset. Mead's peak popularity came in 1918 when it ranked #3,368. Use the chart and map above to compare Mead'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.