Boney
A diminutive of the name Bone, potentially alluding to slenderness or thinness.
Name Census estimates that about 4 living Americans carry the first name Boney. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Boney today is around 67 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Boney births was 1956 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Boney. 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.
Key insights
- • The typical person named Boney is about 67 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Boneys were born before 1969.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Boney. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
4
~ 1 in 85,688,585 Americans
Peak year
1956
5 babies that year
Average age
67
years old
1956 SSA rank
#4,002
Tracked since 1956
Popularity
Boney: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Boney 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 Boney during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 5 | 0 | 5 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Boney
The name Boney traces its roots back to the Old French word "bon," meaning "good" or "worthy." It emerged as a nickname or descriptive name in France during the Middle Ages, likely used to refer to someone who was considered virtuous, kind-hearted, or of good character.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Boney can be found in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive record of landowners and properties in England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. This suggests that the name had already traveled from France to England by the late 11th century, likely carried by Norman settlers or nobles.
In the 13th century, a French chronicler named Jean de Joinville mentioned a knight named Boney de Châtillon in his writings, indicating the use of the name among the nobility of the time. Later, in the 15th century, a French soldier named Boney de Lesparre fought alongside Joan of Arc during the Hundred Years' War, further exemplifying the name's historical presence.
One of the most renowned individuals to bear the name Boney was Napoleon Bonaparte (1769-1821), the celebrated French military leader and emperor. His nickname, "Le Petit Caporal" (The Little Corporal), was sometimes shortened to simply "Boney" by his troops and contemporaries.
Other notable figures with the name Boney include Boney M., the German Caribbean vocal group formed in 1976, known for their unique blend of pop and reggae music. The group's name was a play on words, combining the slang term "boney" (meaning "nice" or "good") with the letter "M" for the German word "Musik" (music).
In the realm of sports, Boney James (born in 1961) is an American saxophonist and Grammy-nominated contemporary jazz musician, renowned for his smooth and soulful sound. Another notable bearer of the name is Boney Kapoor (born in 1956), an Indian film producer and actor who has contributed significantly to the Hindi cinema industry.
While the name Boney has seen varying levels of popularity throughout history, it remains a unique and intriguing moniker with a rich cultural heritage rooted in the ideals of goodness and virtue.
People
Boney + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Boney 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
Boney: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Boney?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 4 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Boney 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 85,688,585 US residents.
Is Boney a common name?
We classify Boney as "Very Rare". It ranks above 6.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 5 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Boney most popular?
The single biggest year for Boney was 1956, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Boney is about 67 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Boney in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Boney a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Boney 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.
Is Boney still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Boney in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Boney can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
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.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people share the name Boney?
Want to know how many Americans are named Boney? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.