Piper
Piper was the 155th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 1,940 babies. Its best year was 2015, when it ranked 67th with 4,140 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 88 places. More babies were named Piper in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Meaning pipe player (surname) · English
Say it PY-per /ˈpaɪpər/
- Rank in 2025
- #155 girls, down 64 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 1,940girls
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a girl’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 20154,140 babies
- Total since 1880
- 62,934babies recorded
What does the name Piper mean?
Piper is an English occupational surname for someone who played the pipe or bagpipes. Wikipedia notes that it took off as a girl's name in the mid-20th century because of the American actress Piper Laurie, who adopted it as a stage name in 1949, and Wiktionary says the same. Before that it was rare as a first name. The word piper itself comes from Old English pipere, from pipe, the musical instrument.
pīpere (Old English, “piper, pipe player”)
How sure is this? Well established.
Related names: Pyper.
See also: English names, names from occupations.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Piper', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation); facts restated, no text reused
- Wikipedia, 'Piper (given name)', Wikipedia (Wikimedia Foundation); facts restated, no text reused
Piper popularity since 1880
A few boys are given the name too: 216 since 1997.
| Year | Rank (girls) | Babies (girls) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #155 | 1,940 |
| 2020 | #91 | 2,902 |
| 2010 | #144 | 2,142 |
| 2000 | #511 | 522 |
| 1990 | #2,094 | 63 |
| 1980 | #1,513 | 79 |
| 1970 | #1,319 | 81 |
| 1960 | #2,418 | 25 |
| 1950 | — | — |
| 1940 | — | — |
| 1930 | — | — |
| 1920 | — | — |
| 1910 | — | — |
| 1900 | — | — |
| 1890 | — | — |
| 1880 | — | — |
How popular is Piper, counting every spelling?
Piper is the most common spelling of a name family that ranked #170 for girls in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #155 for Piper on its own. Together these spellings went to 1,999 girls in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Piper | 1,940 | #155 | 11,135 |
| Pyper | 59 | #2,884 | 351 |
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 Piper?
1,940 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Piper (0.54 per 1,000 births). For a girl named Piper 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 4 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Piper.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Piper?
About 62,100 people born in the US named Piper are alive today, with a median age of 11; half are between 7 and 16. That makes Piper 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.
Piper by state
How common Piper was among girls born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in Vermont (7.2×), Montana (4.3×), Maine (3.9×), Wyoming (3.4×), South Dakota (3.3×). It is least common, relative to the national rate, in California, New Mexico, New York.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Piper: their share of US girls followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Piper, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Piper · Sibling names for Piper
Questions about the name Piper
What does Piper mean?
Piper means “pipe player (surname)” (English origin). Certainty: well established.
How popular is the name Piper?
Piper was the 155th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 1,940 babies. Its best year was 2015, when it ranked 67th with 4,140 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 88 places. More babies were named Piper in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Is Piper a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a girl’s name given the name Piper in the US.
Where is Piper most popular?
In 2021–2025, Piper was most common in Vermont (9.90 per 1,000 girls), followed by Montana and Maine.