Phillips
A masculine name derived from the Greek name Phillipos, meaning "horse lover".
Name Census estimates that about 744 living Americans carry the first name Phillips. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Phillips today is around 54 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Phillips births was 1949 (32 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Phillips. 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
744
~ 1 in 460,691 Americans
Peak year
1949
32 babies that year
Average age
54
years old
2023 SSA rank
#10,516
Tracked since 1904
Popularity
Phillips: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Phillips from the 1900s through to the 2020s, spanning 13 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1940s, with 176 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1940s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Phillips 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 Phillips during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Phillips' live
Origin
Meaning and history of Phillips
The name Phillips is a masculine given name with Greek origins, derived from the ancient Greek name Philipp??s. It is composed of the Greek elements "philos" meaning "friend, lover" and "hippos" meaning "horse." The name can be interpreted to mean "friend of horses" or "horse lover."
In ancient Greek mythology, Phillippos was the name of one of the horses of Achilles, the legendary Greek warrior in the Trojan War, as described in Homer's Iliad. The name gained popularity during the Hellenistic period and was later adopted by the Romans.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Phillippos dates back to the 4th century BC, when it was borne by Phillippos of Acragas, a Greek historian and philosopher from the city of Acragas (modern-day Agrigento) in Sicily.
Throughout history, several notable figures have carried the name Phillips or its variations. One of the most famous was Philip II of Macedon (382-336 BC), the father of Alexander the Great, who was a powerful ruler and military strategist responsible for uniting the Greek city-states.
In the Christian tradition, Philip was the name of one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus Christ, as mentioned in the New Testament. Saint Philip is revered as a martyr and is celebrated in various Christian denominations.
Another notable figure was Philip Neri (1515-1595), an Italian priest and founder of the Congregation of the Oratory, a religious order dedicated to community life and apostolic work.
In the field of science, Phillips Hansborough (1798-1865) was an American mathematician and astronomer best known for his contributions to the study of comets and the calculation of planetary orbits.
The name also has literary associations, with Phillips Brooks (1835-1893) being an American Episcopal clergyman and author who is remembered for writing the lyrics to the popular Christmas carol "O Little Town of Bethlehem."
These are just a few examples of notable individuals throughout history who bore the name Phillips or its variations, showcasing its enduring presence and cultural significance across various disciplines and eras.
People
Phillips + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Phillips 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
Phillips: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Phillips?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 744 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Phillips 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 460,691 US residents.
Is Phillips a common name?
We classify Phillips as "Very Rare". It ranks above 88% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,331 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Phillips most popular?
The single biggest year for Phillips was 1949, when 32 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Phillips is about 54 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Phillips a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Phillips 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.