The story in the numbers

343,458 boys have been named Philip in the United States since 1880, according to Social Security records. The busiest single year was 1953, with 6,279 births — 0.32% of all boys recorded that year.

It is holding steady: its share of births has moved by less than half in either direction over ten years (rank 389 → 521).

Half of everyone given the name was born by 1956, and the 1950s alone account for 18%. It has spent 145 of 145 years in the top 1,000, 108 of them in the top 100.

It is overwhelmingly a boy’s name: 1,137 girls have also been given it, 0.33% of the total.

Rank among boys, year by year

By decade

Decade

boys named Philip

1,741

2,147

2,817

18,166

27,268

28,847

48,733

60,851

44,778

31,371

35,732

20,458

10,193

7,214

3,142

In 1953, its biggest year

Philip was the 61st most given boy’s name that year. The top five boys’ names of 1953 were Robert, James, Michael, John and David. See all of 1953.

Names that rose and fell with Philip

Same sex, most similar popularity curve over 145 years, in five-year steps — the shape of the line, not the size.

Other spellings in the data

What this page does not tell you. The Social Security data records how many babies were given a name, not what the name means or where it comes from — so neither do we. Counts cover people with a Social Security number; names given to fewer than five babies in a year are withheld. More on the data.