ninan.org

Thomas

Boys' name · Mid-century perennial

Living in the US
~1,502,500 survival-weighted estimate
2025 rank
#34 among boys
Births in 2025
6,924 2,367,087 since 1880
Typical age
58 years, median

Thomas popularity over time

Thomas rank by birth year, 1880–2025Thomas ranked #8 in 1880 and #34 in 2025. Its best rank in the period was #8, in 1880.#10#34best #8 in 188018901920195019802010
Rank among US baby names by birth year, 1880–2025. Lower is more popular; the scale is logarithmic so the top of the chart is not compressed.

1952 is the peak year for Thomas, with 48,725 births. It is present from 1880, the first year of the record. Across the record, 146 years put Thomas in the top 100.

In 2025 it ranked #34 with 6,924 births.

Babies named Thomas per yearPeaks at 48,725 births in 1952.48,725 in 1952018901920195019802010
Recorded US births by year. The peak is labelled; the axis starts at zero.

How many people are named Thomas?

An estimated 1,502,500 living Americans are called Thomas. SSA has recorded 2,367,087 births under the name since 1880.

This is a survival-weighted estimate, not a headcount: every recorded birth year is multiplied by the chance someone born that year is still alive, using the SSA period life table. How the estimate works.

How old is the average Thomas?

Median age among living Thomass: 58. Most living bearers were born in the 1950s. By the site’s era rules that makes Thomas a mid-century perennial name.

Your Thomas

Ages of living people named ThomasHalf of living Thomass are older than 58 and half younger.median 58020406080100
Estimated living bearers by age today. Each bar is a birth year, weighted by the chance someone born then is still alive.

Where Thomas is most common

The name is concentrated in Vermont, at 2.8× the national rate. District of Columbia, Wyoming and New Hampshire follow.

Where Thomas is used more than average5 states use the name Thomas more than the national average.Alaska: not over-representedAKMaine: not over-representedMEVermont: 2.8× the national rateVTNew Hampshire: 2.6× the national rateNHWashington: not over-representedWAIdaho: not over-representedIDMontana: not over-representedMTNorth Dakota: not over-representedNDMinnesota: not over-representedMNIllinois: not over-representedILWisconsin: not over-representedWIMichigan: not over-representedMINew York: not over-representedNYOregon: not over-representedORNevada: not over-representedNVWyoming: 2.7× the national rateWYSouth Dakota: not over-representedSDIowa: not over-representedIAIndiana: not over-representedINOhio: not over-representedOHPennsylvania: not over-representedPANew Jersey: not over-representedNJConnecticut: not over-representedCTRhode Island: not over-representedRICalifornia: not over-representedCAUtah: not over-representedUTColorado: not over-representedCONebraska: not over-representedNEMissouri: not over-representedMOKentucky: not over-representedKYWest Virginia: not over-representedWVVirginia: not over-representedVAMaryland: not over-representedMDDelaware: not over-representedDEMassachusetts: 2.4× the national rateMAArizona: not over-representedAZNew Mexico: not over-representedNMKansas: not over-representedKSArkansas: not over-representedARTennessee: not over-representedTNNorth Carolina: not over-representedNCSouth Carolina: not over-representedSCDistrict of Columbia: 2.7× the national rateDCOklahoma: not over-representedOKLouisiana: not over-representedLAMississippi: not over-representedMSAlabama: not over-representedALGeorgia: not over-representedGAHawaii: not over-representedHITexas: not over-representedTXFlorida: not over-representedFL
Same as national3× or more
Location quotient, 2016–2025. Shaded states use the name more than the country does, relative to their own births. Exact figures are in the table below.
States where Thomas is over-represented, 2016–2025. The location quotient compares the state's share of the name with the national share.
StateBirthsvs national rate
Vermont 134 2.8×
District of Columbia 335 2.7×
Wyoming 119 2.7×
New Hampshire 405 2.6×
Massachusetts 2,433 2.4×

Thomas in England and Wales

ONS recorded 1,344 births named Thomas in 2025, ranking it #35. That is 49% lower than five years earlier.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Counts below three are suppressed by ONS.

Where the name Thomas comes from

Inherited from Middle English Thomas, from Latin Thōmās (as in the Vulgate), from Ancient Greek Θωμᾶς, the Biblical Greek transcription of Aramaic תאומא or תאמא (“twin”), the nickname of one of the Twelve Apostles.

Etymology summarised from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0. Wiktionary entry.

Notable people named Thomas

Ordered by how many Wikipedia language editions have an article about them — a measure of reach, not of importance.
NameKnown forYearsEditions
Thomas Edison American inventor and businessman 1847–1931 253
Thomas Jefferson Founding Father, U.S. president from 1801 to 1809 1743–1826 225
Thomas Mann German novelist and Nobel Prize laureate 1875–1955 163
Thomas Hobbes English philosopher 1588–1679 160
Thomas Paine American Founding Father, philosopher, and political activist 1737–1809 135
Thomas More English statesman, lawyer and philosopher 1478–1535 133
Thomas Carlyle Scottish essayist, historian and philosopher 1795–1881 119
Thomas Hardy English novelist and poet 1840–1928 118
Photo credits (8)

The sharpest rise. Births under this name jumped from 3,315 in 1911 to 6,121 in 1912 — 1.8 times over in a single year.

Birth records contain the rise and nothing about its cause. This site does not supply one.

People and dates from Wikidata (CC0), limited to those with an English Wikipedia article who are known by this name as their first name.

Related pages

Get this data

Every number on this page is available as JSON: /api/name/thomas.json. Free to use with attribution (CC BY 4.0).