Briar
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Meaning
thorny patch
The story
Briar is the thorny patch, the hedge that guarded Sleeping Beauty under her older name, Briar Rose, and it is one of the most genuinely shared names in these pages: about 3,600 girls to 2,200 boys this decade, and an all-time ledger of 7,000 to 6,300, two columns growing together rather than one absorbing the other. The curve: about 930 in the 1990s, 1,700, then 4,700 in the 2010s, and already 5,800 so far this decade, past the full total with years to run. It grows in the nature-with-edges bed beside Wren, plants and creatures chosen precisely because they are not soft. A thorn, a fairy tale, and a truce between the columns: Briar offers all three, and the record shows both sides of the nursery accepting.
How popular is Briar around the world?
In the United States, 5,830 babies were named Briar between 2020 and 2025. In Canada, 112 girls named Briar were born in 2024, the 265th most common name among girls that year.
Briar is on the official records of the United States, Canada, New Zealand, South Australia, Scotland and England and Wales.
United States
1 in 3,700
In the United States, 5,830 babies were named Briar between 2020 and 2025.
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Briar peaked in the 2020s.
Births with a Social Security record. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration
Canada
1 in 2,800
In Canada, 112 girls named Briar were born in 2024, the 265th 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 4,800
In New Zealand, 12 girls named Briar 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
South Australia
1 in 9,2002017
In South Australia, 2 girls were registered as Briar in 2017.
The count never rose above 2 in a year, too few to chart.
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
Scotland
1 in 15,000
In Scotland, 3 girls named Briar were registered in 2024, the 790th most common name among girls that year.
The count never rose above 5 in a year, too few to chart.
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 23,000
In England and Wales, 25 girls named Briar were born in 2025, ranked 1,271st 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
Not on the record in Spain, Mexico City, Argentina, Puerto Rico, Ireland and Poland: those registries withhold small counts, so rare uses may sit below their floors.
Not on the Chile record: nametree keeps spellings that reached 5 registrations in some year, so rarer uses are not shown. 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 Briar
Most people given the name Briar 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
The Briar deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Briar 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 Briar fits with your family’s names and surname.
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