Major
Meaning
military rank title, "greater"
The story
Major is Latin for greater worn as a rank and the rank worn as a name, and its record holds two distinct lives. The first was quietly real: about 380 to 1,440 a decade from the 1890s through the 1950s, an old Southern-flavored dignity, then the fade. The second is the title register's doing: about 870 in the 2000s, then 7,700 in the 2010s, nearly nine times over in one step, as King, Royal, Reign, Saint and their court took the certificate by storm, all storied here. This decade holds 3,900 so far, and the record is nearly absolute: about 21,300 boys to 80 girls. The rank sits mid-ladder in the army and at the very top of the nursery, a promotion the certificate grants on day one; the record shows a century of families saluting.
Popularity, 1890–2024
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Major peaked in the 2010s and the 2020s in nearly equal measure.
See popularity in Brazil
Popularity in Brazil
36 people · the #83,466 first name in Brazil · median age 42
Source: IBGE, Censo Demográfico 2022
When you meet Major
Most people given the name Major 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.
The Major deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Major 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 Major fits with your family’s names and surname.
Keep exploring
Does Major fit YOUR family?
nametree reads your family’s names and finds the ones that belong. Free, private, no ads.
Add Major to your family’s tree →