Beck
Beck was the 913th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 259 babies. That is its highest rank since records began in 1880. Over the last ten years it has moved up 319 places. More babies were named Beck in the 2020s than in any other decade.
Meaning Origin uncertain · English, Germanic
Say it BEK /bɛk/
- Rank in 2025
- #913 boys, up 122 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 259boys
- Girls and boys
- 8% girls, 92% boys2021–2025
- Peak year
- 2025259 babies
- Total since 1880
- 4,109babies recorded
What does the name Beck mean?
Beck has several possible sources. In northern England a beck is a brook, a word from Old Norse bekkr, and Bardsley groups Beck with Brook and Brooks among surnames for someone who lived by a stream. In German, Beck is a surname meaning 'baker', which Harrison's dictionary gives. Wiktionary also records a Jewish surname Beck explained as an abbreviation of a Hebrew phrase. As an American first name it is a transfer from the surname, and which source a given family has in mind varies.
beck (English (northern), “brook, stream”)bekkr (Old Norse, “brook”)becke (Middle High German, “baker”)
How sure is this? Uncertain. Several unrelated surname origins; none is specific to the given name.
Related names: Becker, Beckett.
See also: English names.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Beck', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation)
- Wiktionary, entry 'beck', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation)
- Charles W. Bardsley, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with Special American Instances (1901), s.v. 'Sykes (cross-reference to Beck, Brook, Brooks)', Henry Frowde (public domain; Internet Archive scan)
- Henry Harrison, Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary, vol. 2 (1918), s.v. 'BECK', Morland Press (public domain; Internet Archive scan)
- CMU Pronouncing Dictionary (cmudict), Carnegie Mellon University
Beck popularity since 1880
| Year | Rank (girls) | Rank (boys) | Babies (girls) | Babies (boys) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #8,441 | #913 | 12 | 259 |
| 2020 | #5,693 | #1,035 | 21 | 196 |
| 2010 | — | #1,257 | — | 139 |
| 2000 | — | #1,612 | — | 73 |
| 1990 | — | #4,689 | — | 11 |
| 1980 | — | — | — | — |
| 1970 | — | — | — | — |
| 1960 | — | — | — | — |
| 1950 | — | — | — | — |
| 1940 | — | — | — | — |
| 1930 | — | — | — | — |
| 1920 | — | — | — | — |
| 1910 | — | — | — | — |
| 1900 | — | — | — | — |
| 1890 | — | — | — | — |
| 1880 | — | — | — | — |
How popular is Beck, counting every spelling?
Beck is the most common spelling of a name family that ranked #881 for boys in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #913 for Beck on its own. Together these spellings went to 259 boys in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Beck | 259 | #913 | 1,111 |
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 Beck?
259 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Beck (0.07 per 1,000 births). For a boy named Beck 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 32 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Beck.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Beck?
About 3,900 people born in the US named Beck are alive today, with a median age of 11; half are between 5 and 19. That makes Beck 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.
Beck by state
How common Beck was among boys born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in Utah (6.1×), Colorado (2.8×), Oklahoma (2.5×), Wisconsin (1.7×), Indiana (1.6×). In 22 states fewer than five boys a year got the name, too few for SSA to publish, so those states show as zero.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Beck: their share of US boys followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Beck, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Beck · Sibling names for Beck
Beck is also a nickname for Beckett and Beckham.
Questions about the name Beck
What does Beck mean?
The origin of Beck is uncertain: several unrelated surname origins; none is specific to the given name.
How popular is the name Beck?
Beck was the 913th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 259 babies. That is its highest rank since records began in 1880. Over the last ten years it has moved up 319 places. More babies were named Beck in the 2020s than in any other decade.
Is Beck a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, 8% girls, 92% boys given the name Beck in the US.
Where is Beck most popular?
In 2021–2025, Beck was most common in Utah (0.79 per 1,000 boys), followed by Colorado and Oklahoma.