Solon
A masculine name of Greek origin meaning "wise" or "sage".
Name Census estimates that about 618 living Americans carry the first name Solon. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Solon today is around 44 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Solon births was 1916 (33 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Solon. 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
618
~ 1 in 554,619 Americans
Peak year
1916
33 babies that year
Average age
44
years old
2024 SSA rank
#8,212
Tracked since 1880
Popularity
Solon: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Solon from the 1880s through to the 2020s, spanning 15 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 227 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1920s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Solon 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 Solon during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Solons live
Origin
Meaning and history of Solon
The name Solon has its origins in Ancient Greek, derived from the word "solos" meaning "whole" or "entire". It dates back to around the 6th century BCE and is associated with the famous Athenian lawgiver and poet Solon, one of the Seven Sages of Ancient Greece who lived from circa 638 BCE to 558 BCE.
Solon was a renowned statesman who introduced important reforms to the Athenian constitution and legal system, helping to establish the foundations of Athenian democracy. His name has become synonymous with wisdom, justice, and moderation in governance.
The name Solon also appears in various ancient Greek texts and historical records, including the works of Herodotus, Plutarch, and Diogenes Laertius. These sources provide valuable insights into the life and achievements of the historical figure Solon, as well as the significance of his name.
Over the centuries, the name Solon has been borne by several notable individuals. One example is Solon Bailey (1854-1933), an American lawyer and politician who served as a United States Representative from Pennsylvania. Another is Solon Borglum (1868-1922), an American sculptor who was the brother of the renowned artist Gutzon Borglum, the creator of the Mount Rushmore National Memorial.
The name Solon has also been used in literature and popular culture. For instance, Solon is a character in William Shakespeare's play "Timon of Athens", representing the voice of wisdom and moderation. Additionally, the name was given to the main character in the novel "Solon the Peripatetic" by Edward Dahlberg, published in 1952.
Other notable individuals named Solon include Solon Robinson (1803-1880), an American agricultural writer and pioneer of the movement to establish agricultural colleges, and Solon Shingle (1838-1918), a Union Army soldier during the American Civil War who later became a renowned lawyer and jurist in Illinois.
People
Solon + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Solon as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with S
Other first names starting with S with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Solon: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Solon?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 618 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Solon 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 554,619 US residents.
Is Solon a common name?
We classify Solon as "Very Rare". It ranks above 86.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,345 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Solon most popular?
The single biggest year for Solon was 1916, when 33 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Solon is about 44 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Solon a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Solon 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.