Brittish
Of English origin, meaning "from Britain" or "Briton".
Name Census estimates that about 68 living Americans carry the first name Brittish. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Brittish today is around 14 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Brittish births was 2014 (24 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Brittish. 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
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Brittish. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
68
~ 1 in 5,040,505 Americans
Peak year
2014
24 babies that year
Average age
14
years old
2024 SSA rank
#12,357
Tracked since 1989
Popularity
Brittish: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Brittish from the 1980s through to the 2020s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 52 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2010s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Brittish 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 Brittish during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Brittish
The name Brittish has its roots in the ancient Celtic languages spoken in the British Isles during the Iron Age. It is derived from the Old Welsh word "brython," which means "a Briton" or "one who speaks the British language." This term was used by the ancient Celtic inhabitants of Britain to distinguish themselves from their continental European neighbors.
The earliest recorded use of the name Brittish dates back to the 6th century CE, when it appeared in the writings of the Welsh monk and historian Gildas. His work, "De Excidio Britanniae" (On the Ruin of Britain), mentions several individuals with names derived from "brython," suggesting that the name was already in use among the native Britons at that time.
In the 9th century, the Anglo-Saxon scholar and monk Alcuin of York made reference to a person named Brittish in his writings. This further solidifies the use of the name among the early inhabitants of the British Isles.
One of the earliest known historical figures to bear the name Brittish was a Welsh prince who lived in the 10th century. Brittish ap Hywel was a member of the royal House of Dinefwr and ruled over parts of what is now southwestern Wales.
Another notable individual with the name Brittish was a 12th-century English monk and scholar. Brittish of Malmesbury was a Benedictine monk at the influential Malmesbury Abbey in Wiltshire, England. He is credited with writing several theological works and historical chronicles.
In the 15th century, a Scottish nobleman named Brittish Douglas played a significant role in the Wars of Scottish Independence. He fought alongside William Wallace and Robert the Bruce against the English forces, earning a reputation as a fearless warrior.
During the English Renaissance, a poet and playwright named Brittish Jonson gained recognition for his works. Born in 1572, Jonson was a contemporary of William Shakespeare and is best known for his satirical plays and masques.
In the 18th century, a British naval officer named Brittish Nelson made his mark in the Royal Navy. He served during the American Revolutionary War and the Napoleonic Wars, participating in several crucial naval battles and earning a reputation for his bravery and tactical skills.
These examples demonstrate the long-standing use of the name Brittish throughout the history of the British Isles and its association with individuals from various walks of life, including royalty, scholars, warriors, and artists.
People
Brittish + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Brittish 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
Brittish: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Brittish?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 68 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Brittish 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 5,040,505 US residents.
Is Brittish a common name?
We classify Brittish as "Very Rare". It ranks above 58.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 69 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Brittish most popular?
The single biggest year for Brittish was 2014, when 24 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Brittish is about 14 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 Brittish in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Brittish a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Brittish in the SSA data are female. 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 Brittish still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Brittish 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 Brittish 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 are called Brittish?
See how many people share the name Brittish on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.