Whitney
Whitney or Whittney is both a masculine and a feminine given name.
Meaning & Origin of Whitney
What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.
Whitney or Whittney is both a masculine and a feminine given name.
Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →
The Story of Whitney
As a girl name
Whitney first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a girl name in 1936, with 6 babies given the name that year. Its peak popularity came in 1986, when 9,536 Whitneys were born — ranking #32 that year. As of 2026, Whitney ranks #1,055 for girls with 237 births, falling sharply (-16%). In total, more than 98K Whitneys have been born in the U.S. since records began in 1880, spanning the 1930s through the 2020s.
As a boy name
Whitney first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a boy name in 1884, with 9 babies given the name that year. Its peak popularity came in 1986, when 245 Whitneys were born — ranking #566 that year. As of 2026, Whitney ranks #6,269 for boys with 14 births, rising sharply (+20% over the past five years). In total, more than 6K Whitneys have been born in the U.S. since records began in 1880, spanning the 1880s through the 2020s.
Popularity Over Time
Popularity by State
Names that sound like Whitney
Phonetically similar names — useful when Whitney 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 Whitney
What does the name Whitney mean?
How popular is Whitney in 2026?
When was Whitney most popular?
In which U.S. states is Whitney most popular?
Is Whitney a unisex name?
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About the name Whitney
Whitney is a unisex baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1936 and has accumulated 98K births in the dataset. Whitney's peak popularity came in 1986 when it ranked #32. Use the chart and map above to compare Whitney's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.
Continue exploring
- Top names of 1986 →
- Names of the 1980s →
- Names starting with "W" →
- Browse all girl names →
- Top names of 2026 →
- Browse unisex names →
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.