Raymond
Raymond was the 395th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 807 babies. Its best year was 1919, when it ranked 14th; the most babies were born in 1924 (12,873). Over the last ten years it has moved down 135 places. More babies were named Raymond in the 1920s than in any other decade.
Meaning counsel + protection · Germanic, French
Say it RAY-mund /ˈreɪmənd/
- Rank in 2025
- #395 boys, down 84 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 807boys
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a boy’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 192412,873 babies
- Total since 1880
- 783,311babies recorded
What does the name Raymond mean?
Raymond comes from a Germanic name, Old Frankish Raginmund, brought to England by the Normans through Old French Raimund. DMNES and Wiktionary derive it from ragin, "counsel" (or "might"), and mund, "hand, protection"; Harrison (1918) gives the same elements. Medieval bearers include princes of Antioch and Catalan saints, as DMNES notes.
*ragin (Proto-Germanic, “counsel, advice; might”)mund (Old High German, “hand, protection”)
How sure is this? Well established.
Related names: Ray, Raimundo, Ramón, Raymundo.
See also: Germanic names, names that mean wisdom, names that mean protector.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Raymond', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation)
- Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources (ed. S. L. Uckelman), Edition 2023 no. 1, s.v. 'Raymond', DMNES, Durham University
- Henry Harrison, Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary, vol. 2 (1918), s.v. 'RAYMOND', Morland Press (public domain; Internet Archive scan)
Nicknames for Raymond
The usual nicknames for Raymond are Ray. Some parents skip the long form: for every 100 boys named Raymond in the last five years, 35 were named Ray, against 18 twenty years earlier.
| Nickname | Kind | Rank 2025 | Boys, 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ray · also for Raylan | Traditional | #792 | 1,595 |
Nicknames reviewed by our editors; counts are boys given the nickname as their legal first name. Nobody records how many Raymonds go by each one.
Raymond popularity since 1880
A few girls are given the name too: 3,517 since 1896.
| Year | Rank (boys) | Babies (boys) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #395 | 807 |
| 2020 | #311 | 1,062 |
| 2010 | #224 | 1,587 |
| 2000 | #162 | 2,404 |
| 1990 | #92 | 4,062 |
| 1980 | #66 | 4,578 |
| 1970 | #49 | 6,788 |
| 1960 | #46 | 9,720 |
| 1950 | #31 | 11,180 |
| 1940 | #22 | 9,567 |
| 1930 | #16 | 11,714 |
| 1920 | #15 | 12,193 |
| 1910 | #19 | 1,737 |
| 1900 | #23 | 1,150 |
| 1890 | #36 | 546 |
| 1880 | #87 | 165 |
How popular is Raymond, counting every spelling?
Raymond is the most common spelling of a name family that ranked #404 for boys in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #395 for Raymond on its own. Together these spellings went to 807 boys in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Raymond | 807 | #395 | 4,538 |
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 Raymond?
807 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Raymond (0.22 per 1,000 births). For a boy named Raymond 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 10 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Raymond.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Raymond?
About 349,500 people born in the US named Raymond are alive today, with a median age of 60; half are between 41 and 72. That makes Raymond 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.
Raymond by state
How common Raymond was among boys born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in New Mexico (2.2×), Iowa (1.9×), Wisconsin (1.8×), Pennsylvania (1.7×), Minnesota (1.7×). It is least common, relative to the national rate, in Mississippi, West Virginia, Maine.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Raymond: their share of US boys followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Raymond, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Raymond · Sibling names for Raymond
Questions about the name Raymond
What does Raymond mean?
Raymond means “counsel + protection” (Germanic, French origin). Certainty: well established.
How popular is the name Raymond?
Raymond was the 395th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 807 babies. Its best year was 1919, when it ranked 14th; the most babies were born in 1924 (12,873). Over the last ten years it has moved down 135 places. More babies were named Raymond in the 1920s than in any other decade.
Is Raymond a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a boy’s name given the name Raymond in the US.
Where is Raymond most popular?
In 2021–2025, Raymond was most common in New Mexico (1.15 per 1,000 boys), followed by Iowa and Wisconsin.