Will

Meaning: Will and helmet
Origin: Germanic — Short form of William

Boy's name · #1195 in the US (2025) · Vintage

Popularity over time

Will is an heirloom: its strongest era came around 1882, when it ranked #25. It has thinned since but never left the records — about 46,000 boys since 1880, ranked #1195 today. In all that time it has never once missed a year of the national records.

Across the states

See where Will is more common.

Appears in 2020-2025 birth records of 19 states. See the full state-by-state map on this page.

Around the world

See how Will ranks in other countries and regions.

#314 in N. Ireland (2025) · #379 in Belgium (2025) · #468 in Ireland (2025) · #1,083 in Canada (2025) · #1,428 in France (2025) · #1,982 in Ecuador (2025) · #2,664 in England & Wales (2025) · #4,841 in Italy (2024) · #1,459 in Sweden (2024) · #3,576 in Austria (2024) · #728 in Scotland (2023) · #433 in New Zealand (2022) and 3 more.

Famous Wills

Will Smith — American actor and rapper (born 1968)
Will Ferrell — American actor and comedian (born 1967)
Will Durant — American historian, philosopher and writer (1885–1981)
Will Rogers — Cherokee humorist and entertainer from Indian Territory, U.S (1879–1935)
Will Poulter — British actor (born 1993)
Will Arnett — Canadian actor (born 1970)
Will Forte — American actor and comedian (born 1970)
Will Patton — American actor (born 1954)
Will Sasso — Canadian actor (born 1975)
Will Champion — English drummer (born 1978)

In stories & tradition

Will Turner — Fictional character in the Pirates of the Caribbean film series
Will Byers — Stranger Things character
Will Scarlet — Robin Hood

What Wills become

Among 2,032 notable people named Will:

Sports figures appear 2.08× more often than among typical names — e.g. Will Grigg, Northern Irish footballer (born 1991).

Similar names: Willie · Elmer · Whit · Luther · Cecil · Emil

Browse more boy names — popularity, trends and eras for 5,700+ American names, free.

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