Thirty years of George
George in numbers
George has held steady for thirty years: never fewer than 3,082 boys a year and never more than 5,263. Its biggest three-year rise came between 2013 and 2016, from 4,202 to 5,263. It ranked 19th in 1996, reached 2nd in 2018 and ranks 7th now. On average it was given to 4,425 boys a year in the late 1990s, 3,845 in the 2000s, 4,642 in the 2010s and 3,629 in the 2020s so far.
† Shapes, averages and turning points are Baby Data calculations from the ONS counts.
What the official statisticians said
“The birth of the Prince and Princess of Wales’ first child George in 2013 was followed by an increase in registrations”
ONS, on 2021 births in England and Wales. Read the source
Quoted word for word from the official releases, including their own “may” and “could”. Baby Data has not added reasons of its own. Releases for Scotland and Northern Ireland are about babies there, not in England and Wales.
Milestones
First year in each bandChange
- On last year-5%3,257 to 3,082
- 5 years-25%4,100 to 3,082
- 10 years-37%4,869 to 3,082
- 20 years-13%3,540 to 3,082
- Since 1996-28%4,287 to 3,082
- Total, 1996 to 2025124,340boys
† All changes and totals are Baby Data calculations from ONS counts. A total adds only the published years.
Across the three nations, 2025
Each from its own statistics office, never added togetherRank 7 · ONS · 3,257 in 2024
Rank 50 · NRS · 91 in 2024
Rank 34 · NISRA · 50 in 2024
England and Wales (ONS) count births in the calendar year; Scotland (NRS) and Northern Ireland (NISRA) count births registered in the year. Each comes from its own statistics office and they are never added together.
Year by year, 1996 to 2025 Show all 30 yearsHide the table
| Year | Rank | Babies | Change† | 1 in X† |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 7 | 3,082 | -5% | 1 in 98 |
| 2024 | 6 | 3,257 | -7% | 1 in 94 |
| 2023 | 4 | 3,494 | -6% | 1 in 87 |
| 2022 | 3 | 3,699 | -11% | 1 in 84 |
| 2021 | 3 | 4,141 | +1% | 1 in 77 |
| 2020 | 2 | 4,100 | -10% | 1 in 77 |
| 2019 | 2 | 4,575 | -8% | 1 in 72 |
| 2018 | 2 | 4,960 | +1% | 1 in 68 |
| 2017 | 3 | 4,929 | -6% | 1 in 71 |
| 2016 * | 3 | 5,263 | +8% | 1 in 68 |
| 2015 | 4 | 4,869 | +13% | 1 in 74 |
| 2014 | 7 | 4,320 | +3% | 1 in 83 |
| 2013 | 10 | 4,202 | -5% | 1 in 85 |
| 2012 | 12 | 4,408 | +1% | 1 in 85 |
| 2011 | 12 | 4,347 | -4% | 1 in 85 |
| 2010 | 9 | 4,542 | +4% | 1 in 82 |
| 2009 | 11 | 4,347 | +3% | 1 in 83 |
| 2008 | 12 | 4,214 | +7% | 1 in 86 |
| 2007 | 12 | 3,939 | +4% | 1 in 90 |
| 2006 | 14 | 3,787 | +7% | 1 in 90 |
| 2005 | 17 | 3,540 | -1% | 1 in 93 |
| 2004 | 17 | 3,578 | +3% | 1 in 92 |
| 2003 | 16 | 3,479 | -5% | 1 in 92 |
| 2002 | 15 | 3,677 | -5% | 1 in 83 |
| 2001 | 17 | 3,858 | -4% | 1 in 79 |
| 2000 | 17 | 4,034 | -6% | 1 in 77 |
| 1999 | 18 | 4,286 | -6% | 1 in 74 |
| 1998 | 17 | 4,540 | -1% | 1 in 72 |
| 1997 | 18 | 4,586 | +7% | 1 in 72 |
| 1996 | 19 | 4,287 | 1 in 78 |
* ONS’s boys’ 2016 file repeats the October total as September, so the 2016 births total is about 932 too low and 1 in X for 2016 is slightly too low. Rank follows ONS: names with the same count share a rank (shown with =). “Under 3” means the name was given to fewer than 3 babies that year, so ONS did not publish it.
Compare George
Draws the second name on the chart above, on a shared scale.
Share and download
George is in the free dataset (CSV and JSON), with the method and how to cite it.
Source: Office for National Statistics, Baby names in England and Wales, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0; National Records of Scotland; NISRA. Exact spellings are counted separately and names given to fewer than 3 babies are not published. Figures marked † are Baby Data calculations. How we calculate
George is in our lists: Vintage baby names, Royal baby names.