Blu
A shortened form of blue, possibly referring to the color.
Name Census estimates that about 750 living Americans carry the first name Blu. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 60.3% of registrations being male. The average person named Blu today is around 13 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Blu births was 2021 (85 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Blu. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Blu with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
750
~ 1 in 457,006 Americans
Peak year
2021
85 babies that year
Average age
13
years old
2024 SSA rank
#3,790
Tracked since 1970
Census
Blu in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 671 people with the first name Blu, which placed it at #16,695 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#16,695
National first-name rank
People counted
671
671 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
39.9% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Blu
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Blu is White at 39.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (19.1%) and Black (17.0%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Blu described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Blu at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White39.9% · 268
- Hispanic or Latino19.1% · 128
- Black or African American17.0% · 114
- Asian and Pacific Islander12.8% · 86
- Two or more races8.8% · 59
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.4% · 16
Gender
Gender distribution for Blu
Blu is one of the more evenly split names in the SSA data. Of the 761 total registrations, 459 (60.3%) were male and 302 (39.7%) were female.
Blu as a male name
- Ranked #3,790 in 2024
- 29 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2021 (48 births)
Blu as a female name
- Ranked #5,309 in 2024
- 24 female births in 2024
- Peak: 2022 (38 births)
2020 Census snapshot
The 2020 Census sex table shows Blu on both sides of the split. Of the 674 people counted with this name, 415 were male (61.6%) and 259 were female (38.4%).
Popularity
Blu: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Blu from the 1970s through to the 2020s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2020s, with 355 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Blu by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Blu during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Blus live
The SSA's state-level files cover 5 states and territories. Texas, California, Florida recorded the most babies named Blu, while Missouri, Arizona, Florida recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 17 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Blu
The name Blu is a modern invention, likely derived from the English word "blue" which traces its roots back to the Old French "bleu" and the Old English "blæwen." The color blue has been associated with various symbolic meanings throughout history, including loyalty, trust, intelligence, and tranquility.
While the name Blu does not have a long historical lineage, it has gained popularity in recent decades as a unique and unconventional name choice. Some believe it may have been inspired by the Italian word "blu" which means "blue" in English, giving it a touch of international flair.
One of the earliest recorded uses of Blu as a first name can be found in the 1985 American film "The Goonies," where the character Mouth's real name is revealed to be Blu Razato. This portrayal of Blu as a quirky and adventurous character may have contributed to the name's appeal.
Another notable figure with the name Blu is the American graffiti artist Blu, born in the late 1970s, whose real name is unknown. His vibrant and socially conscious murals have garnered international recognition, further associating the name with creativity and artistic expression.
In the world of music, Blu is the stage name of American rapper and producer David Barnes, born in 1983. His unique blend of conscious lyrics and soulful beats has earned him a dedicated following in the underground hip-hop scene.
Blu is also the name of a fictional character from the 2011 animated film "Rio," voiced by actor Jesse Eisenberg. As a rare blue macaw, the character's name perfectly reflects his striking appearance and ties to the natural world.
Finally, Blu was the name given to a baby dolphin born in 2012 at the Dolphin Research Center in Florida. The choice of this unique name was seen as a way to celebrate the dolphin's distinct coloration and the center's commitment to research and conservation.
While the name Blu may not have a deep historical legacy, its modern usage reflects a desire for uniqueness, creativity, and a connection to the natural world, particularly the calming and serene qualities associated with the color blue.
People
Blu + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Blu as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with B
Other first names starting with B with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Blu: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Blu?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 750 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Blu going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 457,006 US residents.
Is Blu a common name?
We classify Blu as "Very Rare". It ranks above 88.1% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 761 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Blu most popular?
The single biggest year for Blu was 2021, when 85 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Blu is about 13 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Blu in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 671 people with the name Blu, or 0.22 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #16,695 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Blu in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Blu?
The 2020 Census sex table shows Blu on both sides of the split. Of the 674 people counted with this name, 415 were male (61.6%) and 259 were female (38.4%). The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Blu?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Blu is White at 39.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (19.1%) and Black (17.0%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Blu most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Blu in the 2020 Census, accounting for 39.9% (268 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Blu in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Blu a male name?
Yes, 60.3% of people registered as Blu in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Blu still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Blu in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Blu can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
How common is the name Blu?
See how many Americans are named Blu on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.