Bernard
Bernard was the 1362nd most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 137 babies. Its best year was 1919, when it ranked 45th; the most babies were born in 1924 (4,505). Over the last ten years it has moved down 146 places. More babies were named Bernard in the 1920s than in any other decade.
Meaning strong as a bear · Germanic, Old French
Say it ber-NARD /bɚˈnɑɹd/
- Rank in 2025
- #1,362 boys, down 112 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 137boys
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a boy’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 19244,505 babies
- Total since 1880
- 201,070babies recorded
What does the name Bernard mean?
Bernard is a Germanic name from bero 'bear' and hart 'strong, hard', as DMNES notes; Wiktionary gives the Frankish form Bernhard and the Old English cognate Beornheard. It was spread by saints, especially Bernard of Clairvaux, the 12th-century reformer of the Cistercian order, and Bernard of Menthon, after whom the St. Bernard dog is named.
bero (Old High German, “bear”)hart (Old High German, “strong, hard”)
How sure is this? Well established.
Related names: Bernie, Bernardo, Bjorn.
See also: Germanic names, names that mean strength, names that mean an animal.
Sources for this meaning
- Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources, ed. S. L. Uckelman, Edition 2023 no. 1, s.v. 'Bernard', DMNES (Durham University)
- Wiktionary, entry 'Bernard', Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0; facts restated, no text reused)
Nicknames for Bernard
The usual nicknames for Bernard are Bernie and Barney. Some parents skip the long form: for every 100 boys named Bernard in the last five years, 9 were named Bernie, against 11 twenty years earlier.
| Nickname | Kind | Rank 2025 | Boys, 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bernie · also for Bernice, Bernadette | Traditional | #8,352 | 66 |
| Barney | Traditional | #12,274 | 12 |
Nicknames reviewed by our editors; counts are boys given the nickname as their legal first name. Nobody records how many Bernards go by each one.
Bernard popularity since 1880
A few girls are given the name too: 983 since 1897.
| Year | Rank (boys) | Babies (boys) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #1,362 | 137 |
| 2020 | #1,250 | 148 |
| 2010 | #1,108 | 172 |
| 2000 | #656 | 275 |
| 1990 | #430 | 516 |
| 1980 | #274 | 769 |
| 1970 | #210 | 1,186 |
| 1960 | #152 | 2,302 |
| 1950 | #110 | 2,636 |
| 1940 | #82 | 2,468 |
| 1930 | #52 | 3,831 |
| 1920 | #46 | 4,163 |
| 1910 | #62 | 560 |
| 1900 | #86 | 308 |
| 1890 | #98 | 178 |
| 1880 | #97 | 140 |
How popular is Bernard, counting every spelling?
Bernard has no other common spelling that sounds the same. Counting every name's spellings together, it ranks #1,300 for boys in 2025, against #1,362 on the official list.
How many kids will share the name Bernard?
137 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Bernard (0.04 per 1,000 births). For a boy named Bernard 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 61 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Bernard.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Bernard?
About 69,000 people born in the US named Bernard are alive today, with a median age of 65; half are between 50 and 75. That makes Bernard a name most people associate with older generations.
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.
Bernard by state
How common Bernard was among boys born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in New York (1.8×), Illinois (1.8×), Virginia (1.5×). In 33 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 Bernard: their share of US boys followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Bernard, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Bernard · Sibling names for Bernard
Questions about the name Bernard
What does Bernard mean?
Bernard means “strong as a bear” (Germanic, Old French origin). Certainty: well established.
How popular is the name Bernard?
Bernard was the 1362nd most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 137 babies. Its best year was 1919, when it ranked 45th; the most babies were born in 1924 (4,505). Over the last ten years it has moved down 146 places. More babies were named Bernard in the 1920s than in any other decade.
Is Bernard a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a boy’s name given the name Bernard in the US.
Where is Bernard most popular?
In 2021–2025, Bernard was most common in New York (0.15 per 1,000 boys), followed by Illinois and Virginia.