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Grier vs Griffen

American parents have registered 1,808 Griffens since 1880, against 756 Griers. But in 2025 it was Grier that was commoner, 26 babies to 17.

Babies given each name, 1880–2025

Births per year: Grier against Griffen, 1880 to 2025 0 30 60 90 120 1880 1900 1920 1940 1960 1980 2000 2020

Grier Griffen

Each line is every baby given the name that year, girls and boys added together — the only count that means the same thing for both names. A line breaks where the name fell below five babies in a year — the point at which the SSA stops publishing it — rather than being drawn through a figure nobody published. A single published year in a gap shows as a dot.

Who was ahead

Of the 66 years in which either name was published, Griffen for 37 years and Grier for 29 years. The lead changed hands 6 times.

Side by side

  Grier Griffen
Total US births 7561,808
Most in one year 43110
Babies in 2025 2617
Estimated living today 6401,800
Median age today 1221
Peak year 20071999
Best rank 4,475th girls1,174th boys
Rank in 2025 5,917th5,399th
First recorded 19161985
Girls / boys 424 / 3320 / 1,808

A rank is a position within one sex’s list for one year, so the two rank rows are not subtracted from one another and the winning column is not marked on them. The living figure is a life-table estimate, not a count.

Which name is older

Half of the Griffens alive today are over 21; half the Griers are over 12. That is 9 years between them: two names in use at the same time, worn by two different generations.

Compare something else

Related comparisons

Social Security Administration birth records, 1880–2025, public domain. Full histories: Grier and Griffen.