Vinny
A masculine diminutive of Vincent, from the Latin name Vincentius meaning "conquering".
Name Census estimates that about 1,240 living Americans carry the first name Vinny. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Vinny today is around 24 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Vinny births was 2011 (54 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Vinny. 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
1.2K
~ 1 in 276,415 Americans
Peak year
2011
54 babies that year
Average age
24
years old
2024 SSA rank
#2,824
Tracked since 1948
Popularity
Vinny: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Vinny from the 1940s through to the 2020s, spanning 9 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 420 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Vinny remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Vinny 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 Vinny during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Vinnys live
The SSA's state-level files cover 8 states and territories. New York, California, Texas recorded the most babies named Vinny, while Ohio, Minnesota, Massachusetts recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 52 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Vinny
The name Vinny is a diminutive form of the Italian name Vincenzo, which is derived from the Latin name Vincentius. The name Vincentius comes from the Latin word "vincere," meaning "to conquer" or "to overcome." It was initially a Roman cognomen, which later became a common given name among early Christians.
The earliest recorded use of the name Vincentius dates back to the 3rd century AD, when it was borne by Saint Vincent of Saragossa, a deacon who was martyred during the Diocletian persecution in 304 AD. His cult spread rapidly throughout the Christian world, and the name became popular among the faithful.
Another notable figure associated with the name was Saint Vincent of Lérins, a Gallic monk and writer who lived in the 5th century AD. He is best known for his work "Commonitorium," which outlined the principles of Christian tradition and became influential in the development of Catholic theology.
During the Middle Ages, the name Vincenzo and its variations, such as Vincente and Vicente, gained popularity across Europe, particularly in Italy, Spain, and Portugal. One of the most famous bearers of the name was Vincenzo Galilei, an Italian lutenist, composer, and music theorist who lived from 1520 to 1591. He was the father of the renowned scientist Galileo Galilei.
In the 16th century, Saint Vincent de Paul, a French Catholic priest, was a significant figure who dedicated his life to serving the poor and founding charitable organizations. He was canonized in 1737 and is the patron saint of Christian charities.
Another notable bearer of the name was Vincenzo Bellini, an Italian opera composer who lived from 1801 to 1835. He is best known for his operas "Norma," "La Sonnambula," and "I Puritani," which are considered masterpieces of the bel canto tradition.
Throughout history, the name Vinny has been borne by numerous individuals, including Vinny Testaverde, an American football quarterback who played in the NFL from 1987 to 2007; Vinny Cerrato, an American football executive who worked for various NFL teams; and Vinny Paz, an American boxer who won several world championships in the lightweight and light welterweight divisions.
Notable bearers
Famous people named Vinny
People
Vinny + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Vinny as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with V
Other first names starting with V with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Vinny: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Vinny?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,240 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Vinny 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 276,415 US residents.
Is Vinny a common name?
We classify Vinny as "Rare". It ranks above 91.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,296 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Vinny most popular?
The single biggest year for Vinny was 2011, when 54 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Vinny is about 24 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Vinny a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Vinny 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.