Augustus
Augustus was the 407th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 783 babies. Its best year was 1880, when it ranked 175th; the most babies were born in 2024 (791). Over the last ten years it has moved up 58 places. More babies were named Augustus in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Meaning venerable, majestic · Latin
Say it aw-GUS-tus /ɔˈɡʌstəs/
- Rank in 2025
- #407 boys, up 92 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 783boys
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a boy’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 2024791 babies
- Total since 1880
- 21,690babies recorded
What does the name Augustus mean?
Augustus is a Latin title meaning "venerable, majestic", from augustus. It was given to Octavian when he became the first Roman emperor in 27 BC, as the Random House dictionary notes, and later emperors took it as a title. DMNES records the related August and Austin. Wiktionary notes that its use as an English given name has grown since the 18th century.
augustus (Latin, “venerable, majestic, consecrated”)
How sure is this? Well established.
Related names: August, Augustine, Gus, Austin.
See also: Latin names.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Augustus', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation)
- Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources (ed. S. L. Uckelman), Edition 2023 no. 1, s.v. 'August', DMNES, Durham University
- Dictionary.com Unabridged (based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary), with Collins English Dictionary, s.v. 'Augustus', Dictionary.com / Random House / HarperCollins
Nicknames for Augustus
The usual nicknames for Augustus are Gus and Augie. Some parents skip the long form: for every 100 boys named Augustus in the last five years, 24 were named Gus, against 35 twenty years earlier.
| Nickname | Kind | Rank 2025 | Boys, 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gus · also for August, Augustine, Gustavo | Traditional | #1,331 | 851 |
| Augie · also for August, Augustine | Traditional | — | — |
Nicknames reviewed by our editors; counts are boys given the nickname as their legal first name. Nobody records how many Augustuss go by each one.
Augustus popularity since 1880
A few girls are given the name too: 10 since 1918.
| Year | Rank (boys) | Babies (boys) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #407 | 783 |
| 2020 | #499 | 585 |
| 2010 | #769 | 290 |
| 2000 | #959 | 159 |
| 1990 | #1,073 | 98 |
| 1980 | #1,315 | 51 |
| 1970 | #989 | 67 |
| 1960 | #996 | 59 |
| 1950 | #778 | 77 |
| 1940 | #616 | 93 |
| 1930 | #546 | 121 |
| 1920 | #474 | 165 |
| 1910 | #337 | 54 |
| 1900 | #312 | 45 |
| 1890 | #259 | 43 |
| 1880 | #175 | 74 |
How popular is Augustus, counting every spelling?
Augustus has no other common spelling that sounds the same. Counting every name's spellings together, it ranks #415 for boys in 2025, against #407 on the official list, because Kason/Kasen/Casen and Mohamed/Mohammad/Mohammed and Rhys/Reece/Rhyse move ahead once their spellings are combined.
How many kids will share the name Augustus?
783 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Augustus (0.22 per 1,000 births). For a boy named Augustus born in 2025, the chance that another child with the same name is in a class of 20 children the same age is under 1 in 50. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 11 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Augustus.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Augustus?
About 15,300 people born in the US named Augustus are alive today, with a median age of 12; half are between 6 and 27. That makes Augustus a young name: most people with it are children.
Babies given the name each year (SSA) times the share of that birth year still alive (SSA life tables). Counts people born in the US only. Method.
Augustus by state
How common Augustus was among boys born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in Wyoming (9.4×), North Dakota (3.9×), Montana (3.5×), Oklahoma (2.9×), Missouri (2.8×). It is least common, relative to the national rate, in Nevada, California, New Jersey.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Augustus: their share of US boys followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Augustus, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Augustus · Sibling names for Augustus
Questions about the name Augustus
What does Augustus mean?
Augustus means “venerable, majestic” (Latin origin). Certainty: well established.
How popular is the name Augustus?
Augustus was the 407th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 783 babies. Its best year was 1880, when it ranked 175th; the most babies were born in 2024 (791). Over the last ten years it has moved up 58 places. More babies were named Augustus in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Is Augustus a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a boy’s name given the name Augustus in the US.
Where is Augustus most popular?
In 2021–2025, Augustus was most common in Wyoming (3.80 per 1,000 boys), followed by North Dakota and Alaska.