Philip

Meaning: Horse lover
Origin: Ancient Greek

Nicknames: Phil, Pip

Boy's name · #528 in the US (2025) · Timeless

Popularity over time

Philip holds its lane: charted since 1880 and rarely far from where it stands today (#528 in 2025). About 344,000 boys have carried it along the way. In all that time it has never once missed a year of the national records.

Across the states

See where Philip is more common.

Appears in 2020-2025 birth records of 37 states. See the full state-by-state map on this page.

Around the world

See how Philip ranks in other countries and regions.

#91 in Norway (2025) · #129 in Sweden (2025) · #166 in Netherlands (2025) · #262 in Austria (2025) · #315 in Ireland (2025) · #436 in Poland (2025) · #553 in England & Wales (2025) · #627 in Scotland (2025) · #864 in Switzerland (2025) · #482 in Canada (2024).

Famous Philips

Philip II of Spain — King of Spain, Portugal, Naples and Sicily; King consort of England, lived 1527-1598
Philip K. Dick — American science fiction author (1928–1982)
Philip Seymour Hoffman — American actor (1967–2014)
Philip II of Macedon — King of Macedon from 359 to 336 BC
Philip Roth — American novelist (1933–2018)

In stories & tradition

Philip the Apostle — Christian saint and apostle
Philip Marlowe — The Big Sleep (book)
Philip J. Fry — Futurama (TV series)

What Philips become

Among 5,380 notable people named Philip:

Military figures appear 1.85× more often than among typical names — e.g. Philip Sheridan, American politician (1831–1888).

Spellings & nicknames

Together with its spelling variant Phillip (#651), Philip would rank around #337 with about 990 births last year — the newborns split about 57/43 between Philip and Phillip.

Similar names: Phillip · Johnny · Finnley · Tommy · Jimmy · Stephen

Browse more boy names — popularity, trends and eras for 5,700+ American names, free.

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