Red
A color name referring to the brilliant red shade of blood.
Name Census estimates that about 165 living Americans carry the first name Red. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Red today is around 17 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Red births was 2024 (18 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Red. 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 Red with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
165
~ 1 in 2,077,299 Americans
Peak year
2024
18 babies that year
Average age
17
years old
2024 SSA rank
#5,381
Tracked since 1888
Census
Red in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 2,004 people with the first name Red, which placed it at #7,565 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
#7,565
National first-name rank
People counted
2.0K
2,004 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.7
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
55.2% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Red
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Red is White at 55.2%. The next largest groups are Black (21.4%) and Hispanic (12.3%). 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 Red 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 Red at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White55.2% · 1,106
- Black or African American21.4% · 428
- Hispanic or Latino12.3% · 246
- Asian and Pacific Islander6.0% · 121
- Two or more races3.3% · 66
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.8% · 37
Popularity
Red: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Red from the 1880s through to the 2020s, spanning 11 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 93 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1920s peak, Red remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Red 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 Red during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Red
The given name Red has its origins in the Old English language, derived from the word "read," which means the color red. This name likely emerged during the Anglo-Saxon period, between the 5th and 11th centuries AD, in the regions of what is now England and parts of Scotland.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Red can be found in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of land and property commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. The Domesday Book lists several individuals with the name Red, suggesting its usage as a personal name during the late 11th century.
In medieval times, the name Red may have been used as a descriptive nickname or byname for individuals with reddish hair or a ruddy complexion. Such nicknames were common practice during this period and often became established as formal given names over time.
One notable historical figure bearing the name Red was Red William of Shoreham, an English poet and religious writer who lived in the late 13th and early 14th centuries. His poetic works, such as "The Vices and Virtues" and "The Life of St. Mary of Egypt," are considered important contributions to Middle English literature.
Another individual of historical significance was Red Hugh O'Donnell, an Irish lord and military leader who lived from 1572 to 1602. He played a crucial role in the Nine Years' War against English rule in Ireland and is remembered as a skilled strategist and defender of Irish sovereignty.
In the realm of literature, the name Red appears in the works of Geoffrey Chaucer, the renowned English poet of the 14th century. One of his characters in "The Canterbury Tales" is referred to as "Red Cloister."
Additionally, Red Skelton, an American comedian and actor born in 1913, made a significant impact on the entertainment industry. Known for his distinctive red hair and comedic talents, he starred in numerous films and television shows, cementing his legacy as a beloved figure in American popular culture.
Another notable figure was Red Adair, an American oil well firefighter and expert in extinguishing and capping oil well fires, who lived from 1915 to 2004. He gained international fame for his daring and innovative techniques in controlling some of the most challenging oil well fires around the world.
While the name Red may have fallen out of widespread use in more recent times, its historical roots and associations with notable individuals throughout various eras showcase its unique and descriptive origins within the English language.
Notable bearers
Famous people named Red
People
Red + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Red as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with R
Other first names starting with R with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Red: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Red?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 165 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Red 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 2,077,299 US residents.
Is Red a common name?
We classify Red as "Very Rare". It ranks above 71.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 380 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Red most popular?
The single biggest year for Red was 2024, when 18 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Red is about 17 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Red in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 2,004 people with the name Red, or 0.66 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #7,565 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 Red 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 Red?
The 2020 Census sex table shows Red on both sides of the split. Of the 2,003 people counted with this name, 1,307 were male (65.3%) and 696 were female (34.7%). 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 Red?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Red is White at 55.2%. The next largest groups are Black (21.4%) and Hispanic (12.3%). 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 Red most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Red in the 2020 Census, accounting for 55.2% (1,106 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 Red in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Red a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Red 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 Red still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Red 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 Red 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 many people are named Red?
Want to know how many people have the name Red? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.