Wattson
An English masculine name derived from the surname Watson, meaning "son of Wat".
Name Census estimates that about 51 living Americans carry the first name Wattson. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Wattson today is around 5 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Wattson births was 2020 (13 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Wattson. 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 Wattson. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
51
~ 1 in 6,720,673 Americans
Peak year
2020
13 babies that year
Average age
5
years old
2024 SSA rank
#8,908
Tracked since 2019
Popularity
Wattson: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Wattson from the 2010s through to the 2020s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2020s, with 46 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
Wattson 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 Wattson during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Wattson
The given name Wattson is a relatively modern name, with its origins likely stemming from the late 19th or early 20th century. It is believed to be a derivative of the English surname Watson, which itself has roots in the Old English words "wat" and "sun," meaning "son of Wat." The name Wat was a diminutive form of the name Walter.
While the name Wattson does not have a deep historical background, it may have been influenced by the rise of scientific and technological advancements during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The prominence of figures like James Watt, the Scottish inventor and engineer known for his improvements to the steam engine, and Thomas Watson, the assistant to Alexander Graham Bell who helped in the invention of the telephone, could have contributed to the popularity of the name Wattson.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Wattson was Wattson Dickinson, an American baseball player who was born in 1873 and played for the Philadelphia Phillies in the late 19th century. Another notable figure was Wattson L. Cammack, an American politician who served as a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Tennessee in the early 20th century.
In the realm of literature, Wattson appears as a character in the novel "The Valley of Fear" by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, published in 1915. This character, named Wattson, is a friend and companion of the famous detective Sherlock Holmes.
Another individual with the name Wattson was Wattson Russon, a British actor and singer who was born in 1920 and had a career in both theater and television. He appeared in various productions in the mid-20th century.
Lastly, Wattson Baty was an American baseball player who played in the Major Leagues between 1928 and 1936. He was an outfielder for teams such as the Philadelphia Phillies and the Boston Red Sox.
While the name Wattson may not have ancient roots or connections to religious or historical texts, its emergence and use throughout the 20th century reflect the influence of scientific and technological advancements on naming conventions during that time period.
People
Wattson + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Wattson as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with W
Other first names starting with W with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Wattson: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Wattson?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 51 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Wattson 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 6,720,673 US residents.
Is Wattson a common name?
We classify Wattson as "Very Rare". It ranks above 54.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 51 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Wattson most popular?
The single biggest year for Wattson was 2020, when 13 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Wattson is about 5 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 Wattson in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Wattson a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Wattson 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 Wattson still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Wattson 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 Wattson 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 share the name Wattson?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.