Names › Boy › R › Ralph
Boy name

Ralph

/ˈɹælf/ · 100% boys · 211 born in 2025

Ralph has been given to about 415,858 people in the United States since 1880. It was most common in 1921, which makes it a interwar name.

Meaning—
Origin—
Syllables1
Pronunciation/ˈɹælf/
Nicknames—
Living in the US≈ 189,148
Median age today74 years

Popularity, 1880–2025

Babies named Ralph per year · SSA, ONS, NRS, CSO, INSEE and SSB
18802025
United StatesEngland & WalesScotlandFranceeach scaled to its own peak
  • Peak year1921 · 8,902
  • Born in 2025211
  • All time415,858
  • England & Wales, 2025#96 · 541

How popular is Ralph?

Its best year was 1921, when 8,902 babies were given the name, ranking 23rd. The typical living American called Ralph is about 74 years old today. It is relatively most common in Utah, where it accounts for 0.02% of births.

Names that sound like Ralph

Phonetic similarity, 0–1
  1. Randolph0.61
  2. Raleigh0.53
  3. Ray0.51
  4. Rudolph0.49
  5. Adolph0.49
  6. Randy0.45
  7. Rylan0.45
  8. Raylan0.45

Middle names for Ralph

Ranked by flow score
  1. Ralph Thomas0.74
  2. Ralph Cole0.73
  3. Ralph Miles0.73
  4. Ralph Wilder0.72
  5. Ralph James0.71
  6. Ralph John0.55

Sibling names for Ralph

Same era, comparable use, no clash
  1. Louisbrother · 0.99
  2. Albertbrother · 0.98
  3. Harrybrother · 0.98
  4. Marthasister · 0.97
  5. Virginiasister · 0.96
  6. Mariesister · 0.96

Where Ralph is strongest

Share of 2025 births by state
  1. Utah0.02%
  2. Wisconsin0.02%
  3. New York0.01%
  4. North Carolina0.01%
  5. Pennsylvania0.01%

With a common surname

Flow score against the most-used American surnames · try your own
  1. Ralph Evans0.73
  2. Ralph Edwards0.73
  3. Ralph Anderson0.70
  4. Ralph Allen0.70
  5. Ralph Adams0.70
  6. Ralph Wilson0.69

How to read these numbers

Every score on this page is explained
  1. Phonetic similarity0–1
  2. Middle-name flow0–1
  3. Sibling fit0–1
  4. Living population estimatemethod
  5. PronunciationCMU dictionary

Sources for Ralph

Every figure on this page is public record
  1. United States1880–2025
  2. England & Wales1996–2025
  3. Scotland1974–2020
  4. France1900–2025
  5. PronunciationCMU dictionary

Ralph across America

Share of 2025 births in each state. Darker means more common.
ME
WA
VT
NH
MT
ND
MN
WI
MI
NY
MA
OR
ID
SD
IA
IL
IN
OH
PA
NJ
CT
RI
NV
WY
NE
MO
KY
WV
VA
MD
DE
CA
UT
CO
KS
AR
TN
NC
DC
AZ
NM
OK
LA
MS
AL
SC
AK
TX
GA
FL
HI
raremost common

Source: US Social Security Administration, national and state name files, 2025 release, and the Office for National Statistics for England and Wales. Etymology researched and written by our editors. Living-population and median-age figures are our own estimates, described in the methodology.