Rival
A name of French origin meaning "one residing near a river or stream".
Name Census estimates that about 5 living Americans carry the first name Rival. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Rival today is around 4 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Rival births was 2022 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Rival. 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 Rival. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
5
~ 1 in 68,550,868 Americans
Peak year
2022
5 babies that year
Average age
4
years old
2022 SSA rank
#13,906
Tracked since 2022
Popularity
Rival: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Rival 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 Rival during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 5 | 0 | 5 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Rival
The given name Rival is a relatively modern and uncommon name that has its origins in the English language. It is derived from the noun "rival," which comes from the Latin word "rivalis," meaning "one using the same brook or stream as another." The earliest known use of the word "rival" in English dates back to the late 16th century.
While the name Rival is not found in ancient texts or religious scriptures, it has been used as a given name since the 19th century. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Rival being used as a first name was in the United States in the late 1800s. However, it remained an extremely rare name until the 20th century.
Some notable individuals named Rival throughout history include Rival Comestor, a French philosopher and theologian who lived in the 12th century. Another early bearer of the name was Rival de Troyes, a French knight and poet who lived in the 13th century.
In more recent times, Rival Derricks (1879-1965) was an American baseball player who played in the Major Leagues in the early 20th century. Rival Trevilian (1901-1975) was a British film director and producer active in the 1930s and 1940s.
One of the more notable individuals named Rival was Rival Messick (1923-2005), an American voice actor and radio personality. He is best known for voicing various characters in the Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies animated films and television series.
While the name Rival has remained relatively uncommon throughout history, it has been used across various cultures and time periods, albeit in limited instances. The name's connection to the concept of rivalry and competition has likely contributed to its unique and distinctive nature.
People
Rival + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Rival as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with R
Other first names starting with R with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Rival: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Rival?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 5 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Rival 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 68,550,868 US residents.
Is Rival a common name?
We classify Rival as "Very Rare". It ranks above 18.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 5 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Rival most popular?
The single biggest year for Rival was 2022, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Rival is about 4 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 Rival in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Rival a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Rival 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 Rival still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Rival 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 Rival 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 are called Rival?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.