Bleu
A given name derived from the French word for the color blue.
Name Census estimates that about 580 living Americans carry the first name Bleu. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 57.9% of registrations being male. The average person named Bleu today is around 7 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Bleu births was 2022 (100 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Bleu. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
People living today
580
~ 1 in 590,956 Americans
Peak year
2022
100 babies that year
Average age
7
years old
2024 SSA rank
#3,099
Tracked since 1979
Gender
Gender distribution for Bleu
Bleu is one of the more evenly split names in the SSA data. Of the 585 total registrations, 339 (57.9%) were male and 246 (42.1%) were female.
Bleu as a male name
- Ranked #3,099 in 2024
- 39 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2022 (61 births)
Bleu as a female name
- Ranked #6,410 in 2024
- 18 female births in 2024
- Peak: 2022 (39 births)
Popularity
Bleu: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Bleu from the 1970s through to the 2020s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2020s, with 374 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Bleu by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Bleu during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Bleus live
The SSA's state-level files cover 3 states and territories. Texas, California, Georgia recorded the most babies named Bleu, while Georgia, California, Texas recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 29 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Bleu
The given name Bleu finds its origins in the French language, deriving from the word "bleu" which means "blue" in English. This name emerged during the Middle Ages in France, where it was initially used as a nickname or descriptive term for someone with blue eyes or someone who frequently wore blue clothing.
The earliest recorded use of Bleu as a given name dates back to the 13th century in various French historical records and documents. It was initially more common among the lower classes and peasantry, as it was a descriptive nickname rather than a traditional name from religious or noble origins.
One of the earliest notable individuals to bear the name Bleu was Bleu de Souvigny, a French knight who fought in the Hundred Years' War during the 14th century. Another early figure was Bleu de Montauban, a 15th-century French poet and troubadour known for his contributions to the development of courtly love poetry.
In the 16th century, Bleu Baudoin, a French explorer and navigator, gained recognition for his expeditions and voyages to the Americas and the Caribbean. His travels and accounts of the new lands helped expand European knowledge of the Western Hemisphere during the Age of Exploration.
During the 17th century, Bleu de Gennes, a French mathematician and physicist, made significant contributions to the field of fluid mechanics and the study of surface tension phenomena. His work laid the foundation for modern understanding of capillary action and wetting phenomena.
In the 19th century, Bleu d'Aurevilly, a French novelist and literary critic, gained prominence for his avant-garde writings and his influential criticism of contemporary French literature. His works, such as "Les Diaboliques" and "L'Ensorcelée," explored themes of passion, violence, and the supernatural.
Throughout history, the name Bleu has remained a relatively uncommon given name, primarily used in French-speaking regions. While it has not achieved widespread popularity, it has maintained a distinct cultural and linguistic connection to its French origins and the color blue.
People
Bleu + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Bleu as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with B
Other first names starting with B with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Bleu: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Bleu?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 580 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Bleu going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 590,956 US residents.
Is Bleu a common name?
We classify Bleu as "Very Rare". It ranks above 85.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 585 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Bleu most popular?
The single biggest year for Bleu was 2022, when 100 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Bleu is about 7 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Bleu a male name?
Yes, 57.9% of people registered as Bleu in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.