Isaac
Isaac was the 47th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 5,953 babies. Its best year was 2013, when it ranked 28th; the most babies were born in 2007 (10,274). Over the last ten years it has moved down 16 places. More babies were named Isaac in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Meaning 'he laughs / will laugh' · Hebrew
Say it EYE-zuk /ˈaɪzək/
- Rank in 2025
- #47 boys, down 8 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 5,953boys
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a boy’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 200710,274 babies
- Total since 1880
- 332,292babies recorded
What does the name Isaac mean?
Isaac is the Hebrew Yitzhak, 'he laughs' or 'he will laugh'. In Genesis he is the son of Abraham and Sarah, and his name recalls Sarah's laughter at being promised a son in old age. In Genesis 21:6 Sarah says that God has brought her laughter. Medieval Christian and Jewish communities both used the name; DMNES finds it in England from 1222.
יִצְחָק (Biblical Hebrew, “Yitzhak, '(he) will laugh'”)
How sure is this? Well established.
See also: Hebrew names, names that mean joy.
Sources for this meaning
- Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources (ed. S. L. Uckelman), Edition 2023 no. 1, s.v. 'Isaac'
- Hebrew Bible, Genesis 21.6, JPS Tanakh: Gender-Sensitive Edition, with translator's note (via Sefaria)
- US Social Security Administration, national baby-name data 1880-2025 (names.zip, yob*.txt), team3 computation
- Wikidata item Q5920537
- Wiktionary, entry 'Isaac'
Nicknames for Isaac
The usual nicknames for Isaac are Ike. Some parents skip the long form: for every 100 boys named Isaac in the last five years, fewer than 1 were named Ike, against fewer than 1 twenty years earlier.
| Nickname | Kind | Rank 2025 | Boys, 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ike | Traditional | #2,460 | 258 |
Nicknames reviewed by our editors; counts are boys given the nickname as their legal first name. Nobody records how many Isaacs go by each one.
Isaac popularity since 1880
A few girls are given the name too: 784 since 1919, 10 in 2025.
| Year | Rank (boys) | Babies (boys) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #47 | 5,953 |
| 2020 | #39 | 7,155 |
| 2010 | #39 | 9,371 |
| 2000 | #53 | 7,439 |
| 1990 | #132 | 2,429 |
| 1980 | #150 | 1,798 |
| 1970 | #333 | 569 |
| 1960 | #365 | 467 |
| 1950 | #282 | 557 |
| 1940 | #246 | 486 |
| 1930 | #231 | 548 |
| 1920 | #191 | 706 |
| 1910 | #130 | 252 |
| 1900 | #116 | 198 |
| 1890 | #92 | 187 |
| 1880 | #62 | 274 |
How popular is Isaac, counting every spelling?
Isaac is the most common spelling of a name family that ranked #44 for boys in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #47 for Isaac on its own. Together these spellings went to 6,461 boys in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Isaac | 5,953 | #47 | 32,842 |
| Issac | 258 | #915 | 1,677 |
| Isaak | 48 | #2,693 | 293 |
| Izaak | 41 | #3,016 | 269 |
| Izaac | 44 | #2,856 | 256 |
| Izak | 23 | #4,449 | 144 |
| Isac | 22 | #4,600 | 130 |
| Isak | 38 | #3,154 | 130 |
| Isacc | 10 | #7,880 | 83 |
| Izac | 7 | #10,089 | 54 |
| Izack | 7 | #10,090 | 29 |
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 Isaac?
5,953 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Isaac (1.65 per 1,000 births). For a boy named Isaac 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 32. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 1 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Isaac.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Isaac?
About 298,700 people born in the US named Isaac are alive today, with a median age of 18; half are between 10 and 27. That makes Isaac mostly worn by children and young adults.
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.
Isaac by state
How common Isaac was among boys born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in District of Columbia (2.1×), Maryland (1.5×). It is least common, relative to the national rate, in Vermont, Mississippi, Louisiana.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Isaac: their share of US boys followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Isaac, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Isaac · Sibling names for Isaac
Questions about the name Isaac
What does Isaac mean?
Isaac means “'he laughs / will laugh'” (Hebrew origin). Certainty: well established.
How popular is the name Isaac?
Isaac was the 47th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 5,953 babies. Its best year was 2013, when it ranked 28th; the most babies were born in 2007 (10,274). Over the last ten years it has moved down 16 places. More babies were named Isaac in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Is Isaac a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a boy’s name given the name Isaac in the US.
Where is Isaac most popular?
In 2021–2025, Isaac was most common in District of Columbia (7.99 per 1,000 boys), followed by Maryland and Nebraska.