Pharrell
A masculine given name derived from the French phrase "par el", meaning "through the nobility".
Name Census estimates that about 445 living Americans carry the first name Pharrell. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Pharrell today is around 15 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Pharrell births was 2003 (67 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Pharrell. 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
445
~ 1 in 770,234 Americans
Peak year
2003
67 babies that year
Average age
15
years old
2024 SSA rank
#8,773
Tracked since 2003
Popularity
Pharrell: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Pharrell from the 2000s through to the 2020s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 233 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Pharrell 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 Pharrell during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Pharrells live
The SSA's state-level files cover 7 states and territories. Georgia, Michigan, New York recorded the most babies named Pharrell, while South Carolina, Illinois, Florida recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 6 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Pharrell
The name Pharrell is a variant of the French name Ferrol or Farrell, which is derived from the Gaelic name Somhairle. This name can be traced back to the 12th century and the medieval kingdom of Dál Riata, which spanned parts of western Scotland and northeastern Ireland.
Somhairle is believed to have originated from the Old Norse name Sumarliði, meaning "summer traveler" or "summer warrior." The name was brought to Scotland and Ireland by Norse-Gaelic settlers and was later Anglicized to forms like Sorley and Farrell.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Pharrell can be found in the writings of the medieval Scottish historian John of Fordun, who mentioned a man named Pharrell mac Gillebride in the late 13th century.
In the 16th century, a Scottish nobleman named Pharrell Stewart was documented as having fought alongside Mary, Queen of Scots, during the Scottish Reformation. He was born around 1540 and died in battle in 1568.
Another notable figure with the name Pharrell was an Irish poet and bard named Pharrell Ó Duibhgeannáin, who lived in the late 17th century and was known for his satirical works criticizing English rule in Ireland.
In the 18th century, a French explorer named Pharrell Delisle was one of the first Europeans to map the Pacific Northwest region of North America, including parts of present-day British Columbia and Alaska.
During the American Revolutionary War, a soldier named Pharrell Fitzpatrick served in the Continental Army and was present at the Siege of Yorktown in 1781, which effectively ended the war.
While the name Pharrell has been more commonly used in modern times, it has a rich history dating back to the medieval era, with connections to Scotland, Ireland, France, and the exploration of North America.
People
Pharrell + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Pharrell as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with P
Other first names starting with P with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Pharrell: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Pharrell?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 445 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Pharrell 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 770,234 US residents.
Is Pharrell a common name?
We classify Pharrell as "Very Rare". It ranks above 83.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 449 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Pharrell most popular?
The single biggest year for Pharrell was 2003, when 67 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Pharrell is about 15 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Pharrell a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Pharrell 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.