Prue
A feminine diminutive of the name Prudence, of French origin meaning "good sense" or "prudence".
Name Census estimates that about 73 living Americans carry the first name Prue. It is a predominantly female name (92.9% of registrations). The average person named Prue today is around 5 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Prue births was 2022 (18 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Prue. 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 Prue. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
73
~ 1 in 4,695,265 Americans
Peak year
2022
18 babies that year
Average age
5
years old
1925 SSA rank
#4,094
Tracked since 1925
Gender
Gender distribution for Prue
Prue leans heavily female at 92.9% of total registrations, but 6 boys have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Prue as a male name
- Ranked #4,094 in 1925
- 6 male births in 1925
- Peak: 1925 (6 births)
Prue as a female name
- Ranked #10,059 in 2024
- 10 female births in 2024
- Peak: 2022 (18 births)
Popularity
Prue: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Prue from the 1920s through to the 2020s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2020s, with 60 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
Prue 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 Prue during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Prues live
Origin
Meaning and history of Prue
The name Prue is derived from the Old French word "prud", meaning "prudent" or "wise". Its origins can be traced back to the Latin word "prudens", which has the same meaning. The name first gained popularity in medieval Europe, particularly in England and France.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Prue can be found in the Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer, written in the late 14th century. In the tale, Chaucer refers to a character named "Prudence", which is the English form of the name Prue.
In the 16th century, the name Prue appeared in various historical records and literary works. One notable example is Prue Osborn, an English Puritan who was born in 1599. She was one of the early settlers of Massachusetts and played a significant role in the establishment of the Massachusetts Bay Colony.
Another historical figure associated with the name Prue is Prudence Crandall, an American educator and abolitionist who lived from 1803 to 1890. She was renowned for her efforts in establishing one of the first integrated schools in the United States, defying the racial segregation laws of the time.
In the literary world, Prue is the name of a character in Charles Dickens' novel "The Old Curiosity Shop", published in 1841. Prue is portrayed as a kind-hearted and devoted servant who cares for the novel's protagonist, Little Nell.
In the realm of religion, Prudence was revered as one of the four Cardinal Virtues in Catholic tradition, along with Justice, Fortitude, and Temperance. This association further reinforced the name's connotation of wisdom and virtue.
Other notable individuals with the name Prue include Prue Leith, a British writer and restaurateur born in 1940, and Prue Acton, an Australian cookery writer and food historian born in 1943.
While the name Prue has seen a decline in popularity in recent decades, it remains a name with a rich historical heritage, evoking notions of wisdom, prudence, and virtue throughout its centuries-long journey.
People
Prue + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Prue 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
Prue: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Prue?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 73 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Prue 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 4,695,265 US residents.
Is Prue a common name?
We classify Prue as "Very Rare". It ranks above 60% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 84 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Prue most popular?
The single biggest year for Prue was 2022, when 18 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Prue is about 5 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Prue a female name?
Yes, 92.9% of people registered as Prue in the SSA data are female. 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.