Lincoln
Old English name meaning "lake colony", from linn meaning "waterfall or lake".
Name Census estimates that about 97,249 living Americans carry the first name Lincoln. It sits at #73 in the overall ranking, outside the top 50 but still well-represented. It is a predominantly male name (98.1% of registrations). The average person named Lincoln today is around 12 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Lincoln births was 2017 (8,441 babies). In terms of living bearers, it sits close to Whitney (97,124).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Lincoln. 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
- • Although Lincoln is used almost entirely for boys, the SSA data does show 1,974 girls registered with the name since 1880.
- • Lincoln is a relatively new arrival in the SSA data. The average bearer is just 12 years old, meaning it gained most of its traction in the last two decades.
People living today
97K
~ 1 in 3,525 Americans
Peak year
2017
8,441 babies that year
Average age
12
years old
2024 SSA rank
#73
Tracked since 1880
Gender
Gender distribution for Lincoln
Lincoln leans heavily male at 98.1% of total registrations, but 1,974 girls have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Lincoln as a male name
- Ranked #73 in 2024
- 4,567 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2017 (8,201 births)
Lincoln as a female name
- Ranked #2,368 in 2024
- 77 female births in 2024
- Peak: 2017 (240 births)
Popularity
Lincoln: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Lincoln from the 1880s through to the 2020s, spanning 15 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 53,183 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Lincoln remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Lincoln 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 Lincoln during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Lincolns live
The SSA's state-level files cover 51 states and territories. Texas, California, Ohio recorded the most babies named Lincoln, while District of Columbia, Rhode Island, Vermont recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 1,864 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Lincoln
The name Lincoln has its origins in the Old English language and dates back to the 9th century. It is derived from the Old English words "linca" meaning "lake" and "coln" meaning "colony" or "settlement". The name was originally a geographical term referring to a settlement near a lake or body of water.
In the Middle Ages, Lincoln became a popular name in England, particularly in the regions around the city of Lincoln. The city itself was named after the Old English word "Lincolne" meaning "colony by the lake". The name was commonly used among the Anglo-Saxon population and grew in popularity during the Norman Conquest of England in the 11th century.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the name Lincoln can be found in the Domesday Book, a detailed survey of England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. The book lists several individuals with the name Lincoln, indicating its widespread use at that time.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals with the name Lincoln. One of the most famous is Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865), the 16th President of the United States, who played a pivotal role in abolishing slavery and preserving the Union during the American Civil War.
Another well-known Lincoln was Benjamin Lincoln (1733-1810), an American Revolutionary War general who served under George Washington and played a crucial role in the Siege of Yorktown, which led to the surrender of British forces and ultimately American independence.
In the realm of literature, Abraham Lincoln Gillespie (1895-1950) was an American writer and journalist known for his works on the American West and his collaborations with the famous photographer Edward Weston.
In the field of science, Abraham Lincoln Katzenstein (1923-2012) was a prominent American geologist and professor at the University of Texas at Austin, known for his contributions to the study of structural geology and tectonics.
Finally, Lincoln Christopher Alexander (1922-2012) was a Canadian architect and urban planner who played a significant role in shaping the modern cities of Canada, including the design of the National Capital Region in Ottawa.
These are just a few examples of notable individuals throughout history who bore the name Lincoln, a name with deep roots in Old English and a rich historical legacy.
Notable bearers
Famous people named Lincoln
People
Lincoln + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Lincoln as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with L
Other first names starting with L with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Lincoln: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Lincoln?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 97,249 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Lincoln 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 3,525 US residents.
Is Lincoln a common name?
We classify Lincoln as "Uncommon". It ranks above 99.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 102,155 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Lincoln most popular?
The single biggest year for Lincoln was 2017, when 8,441 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Lincoln is about 12 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Lincoln a male name?
Yes, 98.1% of people registered as Lincoln 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.