Gleb
A Russian masculine given name meaning "lump of earth or clay".
Name Census estimates that about 161 living Americans carry the first name Gleb. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Gleb today is around 12 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Gleb births was 2013 (20 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Gleb. 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
161
~ 1 in 2,128,909 Americans
Peak year
2013
20 babies that year
Average age
12
years old
2022 SSA rank
#13,001
Tracked since 2003
Popularity
Gleb: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Gleb from the 2000s through to the 2020s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 122 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
Gleb 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 Gleb during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Glebs live
Origin
Meaning and history of Gleb
The name Gleb has its origins in the Slavic languages, particularly in Russian and Ukrainian. It is derived from the Old Church Slavonic word "glubu," meaning "deep" or "profound." The name was popular in the medieval period among the Eastern Slavic peoples, particularly in the territories that now comprise modern-day Russia, Belarus, and Ukraine.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Gleb can be found in the medieval Russian chronicle "The Tale of Bygone Years," which recounts the lives of the Kievan Rus' princes Gleb and Boris, the sons of Prince Vladimir the Great. According to the chronicle, Gleb and Boris were martyred by their brother Sviatopolk in 1015, and their cult as passion-bearers (individuals who suffered for their faith but did not actively seek martyrdom) was later established in the Russian Orthodox Church.
Another notable historical figure with the name Gleb was Gleb Naumovich, a 12th-century Russian prince who ruled the Principality of Pereyaslavl from 1149 to 1169. He played a significant role in the political affairs of the Kievan Rus' and was involved in numerous conflicts with other princes.
In the 15th century, Gleb Semenovich was a prominent Russian boyar (nobleman) and military leader who served under Ivan III, the Grand Prince of Moscow. He participated in various military campaigns, including the conquest of Novgorod in 1478.
During the 16th century, Gleb Ivanovich Naryshkin, a Russian boyar and diplomat, served as an envoy to various European courts, including those of Sweden and Denmark. He was also a member of the Boyar Duma, the highest advisory council in the Tsardom of Russia.
Another notable figure with the name Gleb was Gleb Yakunin, a Russian Orthodox priest and human rights activist who was born in 1934. He was a prominent dissident during the Soviet era and advocated for religious freedom and human rights. He was repeatedly arrested and imprisoned for his activities but continued to be a vocal critic of the Soviet regime.
These are just a few examples of individuals throughout history who bore the name Gleb, which has deep roots in the Slavic cultural and linguistic traditions.
People
Gleb + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Gleb as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with G
Other first names starting with G with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Gleb: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Gleb?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 161 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Gleb 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 2,128,909 US residents.
Is Gleb a common name?
We classify Gleb as "Very Rare". It ranks above 71.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 162 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Gleb most popular?
The single biggest year for Gleb was 2013, when 20 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Gleb is about 12 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Gleb a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Gleb 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.