Pong
Pong is a 1972 sports video game developed and published by Atari, Inc. for arcades. It was created by Allan Alcorn as a training exercise assigned to him by Atari co-founder Nolan Bushnell. Bushnell and Atari co-founder Ted Dabney were so surprised by the quality of Alcorn's work that they decided to manufacture the game.
Meaning & Origin of Pong
What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.
Pong is a 1972 sports video game developed and published by Atari, Inc. for arcades. It was created by Allan Alcorn as a training exercise assigned to him by Atari co-founder Nolan Bushnell. Bushnell and Atari co-founder Ted Dabney were so surprised by the quality of Alcorn's work that they decided to manufacture the game.
Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →
The Story of Pong
Pong first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a baby boy name in 1983, with 5 babies given the name that year. Its peak popularity came in 1995, when 6 Pongs were born — ranking #7,790 that year. As of 2026, Pong ranks #7,790 for baby boys with 6 births, with steady use. In total, more than 21 Pongs have been born in the U.S. since records began in 1880, spanning the 1980s through the 2020s.
Popularity Over Time
Popularity by State
Names that sound like Pong
Phonetically similar names — useful when Pong 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 Pong
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About the name Pong
Pong is a boy baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1983 and has accumulated 21 births in the dataset. Pong's peak popularity came in 1995 when it ranked #7,790. Use the chart and map above to compare Pong's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.
Continue exploring
- Top names of 1995 →
- Names of the 1990s →
- Names starting with "P" →
- 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.