Addison
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Meaning
from an English and Scottish surname meaning son of Addie, an old familiar form of Adam
Goes by Addie, Addy. See all nicknames
The story
Addison began as an English and Scottish surname meaning "son of Addie." Addie was a familiar form of Adam. That surname history explains the meaning, though Addison is now used as a first name for girls as well as boys.
The writer Joseph Addison and his colleague Richard Steele brought essays on manners, society and ideas to readers of The Spectator, a London paper first published in 1711. Addison wanted philosophical discussion to reach places where people gathered, including clubs, tea tables and coffeehouses.
On television, Kate Walsh first played Dr. Addison Montgomery in Grey’s Anatomy in 2005; the character later led Private Practice. American girls had already been receiving the name before her appearance. Earlier American birth records were mostly male, but by the early twenty-first century Addison was much more common for girls than boys.
How popular is Addison around the world?
In the United States, 23,245 babies were named Addison between 2020 and 2025. In South Australia, 23 girls were registered as Addison in 2017.
Addison is on the official records of the United States, South Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Scotland, England and Wales, Ireland, Mexico City, Chile, Argentina and Brazil.
United States
1 in 940
In the United States, 23,245 babies were named Addison between 2020 and 2025.
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Addison peaked in the 2010s. Addison went to 6,889 US babies in 2015 and 3,033 in 2025, 44% of the earlier figure.
Births with a Social Security record. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration
South Australia
1 in 8002017
In South Australia, 23 girls were registered as Addison in 2017.
share of that year’s name registrations
Births registered in South Australia (not all of Australia) by first name and year of registration, 1944–2017, from the state’s Births, Deaths and Marriages registry, which publishes every name down to a single birth in capitals; a spelling its export repeats inside a year is counted once, and from 2018 only a top 100 is published, so the series ends at 2017. Source: Consumer and Business Services (South Australia), popular baby names
Canada
1 in 1,500
In Canada, 246 girls named Addison were born in 2024, the 100th most common name among girls that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from provincial and territorial vital statistics across Canada; any name-sex-year under 5 is excluded at source, and small Quebec counts carry a randomized adjustment made at source. Shares divide by Statistics Canada’s count of live births for the year; the 2024 count is preliminary. Source: Statistics Canada, first names at birth (table 17-10-0147-01)
New Zealand
1 in 1,500
In New Zealand, 38 girls named Addison were registered in 2025.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from New Zealand birth registrations, grouped by registration year; any name under 10 in a year is excluded at source. Shares divide by Stats NZ’s count of births registered to mothers living in New Zealand, under 1% below the registry’s own count. Source: Department of Internal Affairs (New Zealand), baby name popularity over time
Scotland
1 in 1,600
In Scotland, 28 girls named Addison were registered in 2024, the 152nd most common name among girls that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Births registered in Scotland; different spellings count separately but accents are merged at source, and any spelling under 3 in total is suppressed. Source: National Records of Scotland, babies' first names
England and Wales
1 in 4,300
In England and Wales, 123 girls named Addison were born in 2025, the 351st most common name among girls that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Birth registrations in England and Wales (not the whole UK); exact spellings are counted separately, and any spelling under 3 in a year is withheld at source. Source: Office for National Statistics, baby names in England and Wales
Ireland
1 in 9,000
In Ireland, 6 girls named Addison were born in 2025, the 544th most common name among girls that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Exact registered spellings from Irish vital statistics; any name under 3 in a year is withheld at source, and accented spellings (fadas) are recorded reliably only from 2018. Source: Central Statistics Office (Ireland), Irish babies' names
Mexico City City
1 in 11,000
In Mexico City, there were 11 registrations of Addison in 2022.
share of that year’s registrations in the city
Civil-registry acts in Mexico City by registration year. Counts are lower bounds (names under 6 in a month and borough are removed at source) and count name-instances, not people; compound names are split, so “Maria Jose” counts under each part. 2023, a partial extract through 3 Mar with no cell on record for this name, is excluded. Source: Registro Civil of Mexico City, open data portal, registered given names 2000-2023
Chile
1 in 14,000
In Chile, 13 girls were registered as Addison in 2021, every accent spelling counted together.
share of that year’s name registrations
First-name registrations with Chile’s civil registry by year of registration, 1920–2021, counted as spelling groups (Sofía, Sofia and Sofìa are one name, shown with its most-registered spelling); the registry withholds nothing, nametree keeps the groups that reached 5 registrations in some year, and shares divide by every registration of the year. Source: Servicio de Registro Civil e Identificación (Chile) via the guaguas package, first-name registrations 1920-2021
Argentina
1 in 17,000
In Argentina, 40 newborns were given the name Addison in 2024.
share of that year’s name registrations
Given-name components of births in Argentina 2012–2024; national cells are lower bounds and no sex split is published. Source: RENAPER (Argentina), Dirección Nacional de Población, given names 2012-2024
Brazil
At the 2022 census, 83 people in Brazil were named Addison, ranked 47,007th, with a median age of 28.
Among people named Addison living in Brazil at the 2022 census, more were born in the 1990s than in any other decade.
people alive at the 2022 census, by decade of birth
People alive and resident in Brazil at the 2022 census, a living-population count, not births; names under 20 are withheld at source. Source: IBGE, Censo Demográfico 2022
New South Wales
outside the top 100
Addison is not in the 2025 top 100 for New South Wales.
share of that year’s top-100 registrations
New South Wales (not all of Australia) publishes only each year’s 100 most popular names per sex, so a missing year means below that top 100, not rare. Source: NSW Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages, popular baby names
Not on the record in Spain, Puerto Rico and Poland: those registries withhold small counts, so rare uses may sit below their floors.
Not on the Montevideo record for 1940 to 2011: that registry withholds nothing, so this spelling was not given there in those years. Not on the France record: nametree keeps spellings that reached 20 births in some year, so rarer uses are not shown. Not on the Austria record for 1984 to 2025: Statistik Austria publishes every first name down to a single birth, so this name was not given there in those years (before 2010 the record covers babies with Austrian citizenship only). Not on Norway’s list: Statistics Norway lists only first names carried by 200 or more living people, so rarer names are not shown.
When you meet Addison
Most people given the name Addison in the United States are children or teenagers today. The name belongs to this generation.
Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.
Keep exploring
Names like Addison · Names that go with Addison · Nicknames for Addison · Climbers and fallers
The Addison deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Addison truly comes from, how it traveled, and what a century of records reveals. If you have grown a tree on nametree, it also considers how Addison fits with your family’s names and surname.
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