Pickens
From Middle English meaning "small portion of land enclosed by fences".
Name Census estimates that about 1 living Americans carry the first name Pickens. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Pickens today is around 52 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Pickens births was 1918 (6 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Pickens. 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 Pickens. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
1
~ 1 in 342,754,338 Americans
Peak year
1918
6 babies that year
Average age
52
years old
1930 SSA rank
#4,424
Tracked since 1918
Popularity
Pickens: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Pickens from the 1910s through to the 1930s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1910s, with 6 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Pickens 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 Pickens 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 Pickens
The name Pickens is believed to have originated from the Old English language, derived from the words "pic" meaning a small pointed object or pike, and "ken" meaning a skilled person or craftsman. This suggests that the name initially referred to a maker or worker of pikes or spears during the Anglo-Saxon period in England, around the 5th to 11th centuries AD.
The earliest recorded use of the name Pickens can be traced back to the Domesday Book of 1086, a comprehensive record of landowners and tenants in England commissioned by William the Conqueror. It appears as a surname, likely referring to the occupation of the individual.
During the Middle Ages, the name Pickens was primarily found in the northern regions of England, particularly in Yorkshire and Northumberland, where the production of pikes and other weapons was a prominent industry. It is possible that some individuals adopted the name as a first name, although it was more commonly used as a surname.
One of the earliest recorded instances of Pickens as a first name dates back to the 14th century, with Pickens de Walsingham, a monk and chronicler from Norfolk, England, who lived from around 1322 to 1419. He is best known for his historical work, the "Chronica Monasterii S. Albani."
In the 16th century, Pickens Petrie, a Scottish philosopher and historian, was born in Aberdeen in 1552. He is remembered for his writings on the history of Scotland and his advocacy for the union of Scotland and England.
During the 17th century, Pickens Mowbray, an English playwright and poet, gained recognition for his works, including the play "The Tragedy of Philander." He was born in 1628 and died in 1678.
In the 18th century, Pickens Hawkins, a British explorer and naturalist, made significant contributions to the study of flora and fauna. Born in 1744, he embarked on several expeditions to Africa and the West Indies, documenting his findings in various publications.
In the 19th century, Pickens Whitlock, an American politician and lawyer, served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from Mississippi. He was born in 1806 and played a prominent role in shaping the political landscape of his time.
While the name Pickens has its roots in Old English and was initially associated with occupations related to the production of pikes or spears, it has evolved over time and gained recognition through various historical figures who bore this name as their first name.
People
Pickens + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Pickens 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
Pickens: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Pickens?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Pickens 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 342,754,338 US residents.
Is Pickens a common name?
We classify Pickens as "Very Rare". It ranks above 3.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 11 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Pickens most popular?
The single biggest year for Pickens was 1918, when 6 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Pickens is about 52 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 Pickens in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Pickens a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Pickens 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.
Is Pickens still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Pickens 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 Pickens 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 share the name Pickens?
You can see how many people share the name Pickens on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.