Beau
Beau was the 60th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 5,165 babies. That is its highest rank since records began in 1880. Over the last ten years it has moved up 143 places. More babies were named Beau in the 2020s than in any other decade.
Meaning handsome (French) · French
Say it BOH /boʊ/
- Rank in 2025
- #60 boys, up 49 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 5,165boys
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a boy’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 20255,165 babies
- Total since 1880
- 66,603babies recorded
What does the name Beau mean?
Beau is the French word for 'handsome' or 'beautiful', the masculine form of belle. Wiktionary notes two routes into use as a first name: directly from the French word, and as a shortened form of French-derived surnames such as Beauregard and Beaumont, which were used as given names in the American South. The French word, from Latin bellus, 'pretty', also entered English as beau, a sweetheart or, in older use, a fashionable man. It has been a given name since the mid-20th century.
beau (French, “handsome, beautiful”)bellus (Latin, “pretty, fine”)
How sure is this? Probable. Both the word and the surname-shortening routes are given; which applies varies by family.
Related names: Bo, Beauregard, Beaumont, Belle.
See also: French names, names that mean beautiful.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Beau', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation); facts restated, no text reused
- Wiktionary, entry 'beau', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation); facts restated, no text reused
Beau popularity since 1880
A few girls are given the name too: 1,011 since 1977, 59 in 2025.
| Year | Rank (boys) | Babies (boys) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #60 | 5,165 |
| 2020 | #109 | 3,344 |
| 2010 | #375 | 766 |
| 2000 | #467 | 507 |
| 1990 | #337 | 732 |
| 1980 | #203 | 1,207 |
| 1970 | #627 | 167 |
| 1960 | #2,133 | 15 |
| 1950 | #2,448 | 10 |
| 1940 | #2,681 | 8 |
| 1930 | — | — |
| 1920 | — | — |
| 1910 | — | — |
| 1900 | — | — |
| 1890 | — | — |
| 1880 | — | — |
How popular is Beau, counting every spelling?
Beau is the most common spelling of a name family that ranked #51 for boys in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #60 for Beau on its own. Together these spellings went to 6,140 boys in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Beau | 5,165 | #60 | 21,742 |
| Bo | 698 | #449 | 3,259 |
| Beaux | 236 | #970 | 1,101 |
| Boe | 35 | #3,318 | 176 |
| Bowe | 6 | #10,869 | 41 |
Spellings count together when they sound the same in American English and are used for the same sex; nicknames and forms that sound different (such as Theo and Theodore) are kept apart. How we group spellings.
How many kids will share the name Beau?
5,165 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Beau (1.43 per 1,000 births). For a boy named Beau born in 2025, the chance that another child with the same name is in a class of 20 children the same age is about 1 in 37. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 2 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Beau.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Beau?
About 64,100 people born in the US named Beau are alive today, with a median age of 9; half are between 4 and 25. That makes Beau 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.
Beau by state
How common Beau was among boys born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in Wyoming (4.3×), Montana (3.1×), North Dakota (2.9×), South Dakota (2.8×), Maine (2.4×). It is least common, relative to the national rate, in New York, New Jersey, California.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Beau: their share of US boys followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Beau, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Beau · Sibling names for Beau
Questions about the name Beau
What does Beau mean?
Beau means “handsome (French)” (French origin). Certainty: probable.
How popular is the name Beau?
Beau was the 60th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 5,165 babies. That is its highest rank since records began in 1880. Over the last ten years it has moved up 143 places. More babies were named Beau in the 2020s than in any other decade.
Is Beau a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a boy’s name given the name Beau in the US.
Where is Beau most popular?
In 2021–2025, Beau was most common in Wyoming (10.89 per 1,000 boys), followed by Montana and North Dakota.