Travis
Travis was the 434th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 732 babies. Its best year was 1979, when it ranked 36th; the most babies were born in 1989 (11,526). Over the last ten years it has moved down 177 places. More babies were named Travis in the 1980s than in any other decade.
Meaning from Old French travers (crossing) · English, Old French
Say it TRAV-is /ˈtrævɪs/
- Rank in 2025
- #434 boys, down 96 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 732boys
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a boy’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 198911,526 babies
- Total since 1880
- 310,687babies recorded
What does the name Travis mean?
Travis is an English surname from Old French travers, "crossing", from Latin transversus. Wiktionary explains it as a name for a toll collector at a bridge or crossing; Harrison (1918) reads Travers as "dweller at a crossroad" and notes that in the 16th and 17th centuries the same person could be written both Travers and Travis. William Barret Travis, commander at the Alamo, made it familiar in the US.
travers (Old French, “crossing”)transversus (Latin, “lying across”)
How sure is this? Probable. Agreed source word; 'toll collector' and 'lived at a crossing' are both proposed.
Related names: Travers, Trav.
See also: English names.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Travis', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation)
- Henry Harrison, Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary, vol. 2 (1918), s.v. 'TRAVERS', Morland Press (public domain; Internet Archive scan)
Nicknames for Travis
The usual nicknames for Travis are Trav.
| Nickname | Kind | Rank 2025 | Boys, 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trav | Traditional | — | — |
Nicknames reviewed by our editors; counts are boys given the nickname as their legal first name. Nobody records how many Traviss go by each one.
Travis popularity since 1880
A few girls are given the name too: 2,116 since 1910.
| Year | Rank (boys) | Babies (boys) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #434 | 732 |
| 2020 | #338 | 965 |
| 2010 | #178 | 2,126 |
| 2000 | #115 | 3,289 |
| 1990 | #42 | 11,462 |
| 1980 | #37 | 10,764 |
| 1970 | #69 | 4,321 |
| 1960 | #330 | 549 |
| 1950 | #345 | 383 |
| 1940 | #295 | 355 |
| 1930 | #361 | 254 |
| 1920 | #386 | 240 |
| 1910 | #511 | 31 |
| 1900 | #443 | 27 |
| 1890 | #734 | 9 |
| 1880 | #564 | 12 |
How popular is Travis, counting every spelling?
Travis has no other common spelling that sounds the same. Counting every name's spellings together, it ranks #437 for boys in 2025, against #434 on the official list, because Kason/Kasen/Casen and Mohamed/Mohammad/Mohammed and Chosen/Chozen/Chozyn move ahead once their spellings are combined.
How many kids will share the name Travis?
732 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Travis (0.20 per 1,000 births). For a boy named Travis 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 11 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Travis.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Travis?
About 280,300 people born in the US named Travis are alive today, with a median age of 39; half are between 32 and 47. That makes Travis mostly worn by adults in their thirties to fifties.
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.
Travis by state
How common Travis was among boys born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in Mississippi (2.4×), Louisiana (1.8×), Alabama (1.6×), New Jersey (1.5×), Connecticut (1.5×). It is least common, relative to the national rate, in South Dakota, Minnesota, Montana.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Travis: their share of US boys followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Travis, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Travis · Sibling names for Travis
Questions about the name Travis
What does Travis mean?
Travis means “from Old French travers (crossing)” (English, Old French origin). Certainty: probable.
How popular is the name Travis?
Travis was the 434th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 732 babies. Its best year was 1979, when it ranked 36th; the most babies were born in 1989 (11,526). Over the last ten years it has moved down 177 places. More babies were named Travis in the 1980s than in any other decade.
Is Travis a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a boy’s name given the name Travis in the US.
Where is Travis most popular?
In 2021–2025, Travis was most common in Mississippi (1.18 per 1,000 boys), followed by Rhode Island and Louisiana.