Webb
A name derived from an occupation word referring to a weaver.
Name Census estimates that about 876 living Americans carry the first name Webb. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Webb today is around 42 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Webb births was 1927 (27 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Webb. 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
876
~ 1 in 391,272 Americans
Peak year
1927
27 babies that year
Average age
42
years old
2024 SSA rank
#5,628
Tracked since 1880
Popularity
Webb: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Webb from the 1880s through to the 2020s, spanning 15 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1950s, with 195 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1950s peak, Webb remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Webb 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 Webb during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Webbs live
The SSA's state-level files cover 6 states and territories. Louisiana, Texas, Tennessee recorded the most babies named Webb, while North Carolina, Mississippi, Alabama recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 7 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Webb
The name Webb originated as an English surname derived from the occupation of a weaver, derived from the Old English word "webb" meaning "weaver". It eventually transitioned into use as a masculine given name as well.
The earliest recorded use of Webb as a first name dates back to the 16th century in England. One of the earliest known bearers was Webb Raleigh, an English landowner and member of Parliament who lived from 1562 to 1622.
In the 17th century, Webb Elliston (1613-1675) was an English clergyman and academic who served as the Master of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge. During the same period, Webb Follett (1623-1677) was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons.
The name gained further prominence in the 18th century with individuals like Webb Seymour (1718-1795), an English politician and Member of Parliament, and Webb Jackson (1734-1795), a British naval officer and explorer who served in the Royal Navy.
In the 19th century, Webb Everett (1818-1892) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 15th Governor of Massachusetts from 1859 to 1860. Another notable bearer was Webb Peploe (1826-1894), an English Anglican clergyman and writer known for his evangelical works.
The name continued to be used in the 20th century, with notable individuals such as Webb Miller (1892-1940), an American artist and painter known for his modernist works, and Webb Pierce (1921-1991), an American country music singer and songwriter who popularized the honky-tonk sound.
While the name Webb has its origins as an English surname, it has been adopted as a given name across various cultures and regions, reflecting its historic and occupational roots in weaving and textile production.
People
Webb + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Webb 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
Webb: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Webb?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 876 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Webb 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 391,272 US residents.
Is Webb a common name?
We classify Webb as "Very Rare". It ranks above 89.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,642 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Webb most popular?
The single biggest year for Webb was 1927, when 27 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Webb is about 42 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Webb a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Webb 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.