Success
A virtue name derived from the Latin term meaning accomplishment or prosperity.
Name Census estimates that about 203 living Americans carry the first name Success. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 57.4% of registrations being female. The average person named Success today is around 9 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Success births was 2020 (23 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Success. 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.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Success with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
203
~ 1 in 1,688,445 Americans
Peak year
2020
23 babies that year
Average age
9
years old
2024 SSA rank
#13,933
Tracked since 2007
Gender
Gender distribution for Success
Success is one of the more evenly split names in the SSA data. Of the 204 total registrations, 87 (42.6%) were male and 117 (57.4%) were female.
Success as a male name
- Ranked #13,933 in 2024
- 5 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2020 (9 births)
Success as a female name
- Ranked #17,329 in 2024
- 5 female births in 2024
- Peak: 2019 (17 births)
Popularity
Success: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Success from the 2000s through to the 2020s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 117 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Success remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Success 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 Success during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Success' live
Origin
Meaning and history of Success
The given name Success is an English word name that began to be used as a given name in the 17th century. It originated as a virtue name, expressing the desire for a prosperous and successful life for the child. The name is derived from the Latin word "successus," which means "an advance" or "a forward movement."
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Success was in 1618 when a Puritan couple in Massachusetts named their son Success. The Puritans were known for giving their children virtue names that reflected their religious beliefs and values. As such, Success was likely chosen to symbolize the hope for the child to lead a prosperous and successful life in accordance with their faith.
Throughout the 17th and 18th centuries, the name Success was mainly used by English Puritan families in the American colonies. It was a relatively uncommon name, but it did appear in historical records and church registries of the time.
One notable individual named Success was Success Salmingunder, born in 1633 in Massachusetts. He was a Puritan minister and an early settler of the town of Rehoboth, Massachusetts. Another early bearer of the name was Success Norcross, born in 1681 in Massachusetts, who served as a soldier in the French and Indian Wars.
In the 19th century, the name Success began to gain some popularity among African American families, particularly in the Southern states. This was likely due to the desire to express hope and aspiration for a successful future amidst the challenges and struggles faced by the African American community during that time.
One famous African American named Success was Success Martin, born in 1846 in Alabama. He was a Baptist minister and a prominent figure in the African American community in Alabama during the late 19th century.
Another notable individual with the name Success was Success Shadduck, born in 1824 in New York. She was a Quaker teacher and abolitionist who was actively involved in the Underground Railroad, helping to guide enslaved individuals to freedom.
While the name Success has never been a widely popular name, it has continued to be used sporadically throughout history, often chosen by families who wished to express their hopes and aspirations for their child's future success and prosperity.
People
Success + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Success 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
Success: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Success?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 203 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Success 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 1,688,445 US residents.
Is Success a common name?
We classify Success as "Very Rare". It ranks above 74.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 204 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Success most popular?
The single biggest year for Success was 2020, when 23 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Success is about 9 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 Success in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Success a female name?
Yes, 57.4% of people registered as Success 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.
Is Success still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Success 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 Success 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 Americans are named Success?
Want to know how many Americans are named Success? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.