Every Boy Name

Boy's name

Paul

Say it PAWL 1 syllable

Latin · “small”

Loved across Austria and three German cities. Common across France, Quebec, three German cities, and 1 more place. Rare across the UK, Italy, Poland, and 10 more places.

1 in 61 boys born in Austria in 2025. Number 2 there.

Paul in every place

Rank, count and share in all 40 places: loved in 4, common in 6, rare in 15.
Paul in every place we hold figures for
Place Rankyear Boysshare 5 years earlier
British Isles
England and Wales602 (down)2025641 in 4,2493842020
Scotland316 (down)2025111 in 1,7862132020
Northern Ireland270 (down)202561 in 1,3802132020
Ireland286 (down)2025151 in 1,5821652020
North America
Ontario (province)264 (up)202451about 1 in 1,1742832019
Quebec (province)60 (up)2025111about 1 in 262952020
British Columbia (province)318 (up)202310about 1 in 1,3023602018
Nova Scotia (province)Not in the published top 212025Not listed2020
Oceania
New South Wales (state)Not in the published top 1002025Not listed2020
Victoria (state)Not in the published top 1012025Not listed2020
Queensland (state)Not in the published top 1012025Not listed2020
South Australia (state)Not in the published top 1002025Not listed2020
New ZealandNot in the published top 1002025Not listed2020
Western Europe
France23 (down)20251,7251 in 175152020
Netherlands831 (up)202514about 1 in 4,7528692020
Central Europe
Austria2 (up)20256251 in 6152020
Switzerland101 (down)2025691 in 522652020
Berlin (city)11 (down)2023117about 1 in 13322018
Munich (city)11 (down)202563about 1 in 6982020
Cologne (city)8 (down)202357about 1 in 11212018
Bonn (city)2 (up)202542about 1 in 7552020
Leipzig (city)5 (down)202533about 1 in 8742020
Rostock (city)30 (down)20256about 1 in 174142020
Nordic countries
NorwayRare: below the complete list20253352020
Sweden452 (up)202513about 1 in 3,3185092020
DenmarkNot in the published top 502025Not listed2020
FinlandNot in the published top 502025No list2020
IcelandNot in the published top 102025No list2020
Southern Europe
SpainNot in the published top 1002024Not listed2019
Catalonia (region) (as Paül)426 (up)202571 in 2,9584552020
Italy291 (new in the list)2024451 in 4,208Not listed2019
Central and Eastern Europe
Poland490 (down)202541 in 31,6013652020
HungaryNot in the published top 1002025Not listed2020
SloveniaRare: below the complete list2025Not listed2020
Estonia22 (new in the list)202538Not listed2020
Moscow (city)Not in the published top 612025Not listed2020
CroatiaNot in the published top 502025No list2020
Middle East
TurkeyNot in the published top 302025Not listed2020
IsraelRare: below the complete list2024Not listed2019
Latin America
ArgentinaNot in the published top 202024Not listed2019

Germany publishes no national list; the German rows are city registers. About: the publisher leaves out its smallest names, so the share is approximate. ▲ and ▼ compare the rank with five years earlier. Not listed five years earlier: not in that year’s list. No list: the place published no list that year. How these figures are computed.

About the name

Paul comes from the Latin Paulus, from paulus, 'small'. It is the name of the apostle Paul. It is a double of Pablo and Paolo.

2 more paragraphs

A single syllable, PAWL, gives it a simple, calm sound. Related names include Pablo, Paolo, Pol, Pavel, Pau and Pål.

Paul is a leading name in Austria and popular in Estonia and France. In English-speaking countries it is rarer, found in the lists for Quebec, Ontario and Northern Ireland. French records show a long history, with the name at its most common in the 1920s, and it is now falling in most of the places that record it.

Meaning, origin and how to say it

Say it
PAWL · 1 syllable
Meaning
“small”
Origin
Latin
Spellings counted
Counted together with Paul here: Paül.
Related names
Pablo, Paolo, Pol, Pavel, Pawel, Pau, Paulus, Pål, Paulo, Pawl, Phaolô, Paora, Pàl, Paľo, Páll, Pál, Pavol, Pauli
Where Paul comes from (Wiktionary)

From Latin Paulus, from paulus (“small”). Doublet of Pablo and Paolo.

Shortened from the Wiktionary entry for Paul. Text available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Paul over time

Rising in 3 of the 19 regions we can compare over five years, falling in 9. Peak in France: 1925.

Rank in England and Wales, 1996 to 2025

Paul in England and Wales: #72 in 1996, and #602 in 2025.

#1#10#50#100#300#1,000200020052010201520202025Top 101996: #72, 898 boys1997: #76, 806 boys1998: #78, 767 boys1999: #93, 554 boys2000: #103, 478 boys2001: #108, 420 boys2002: #121, 385 boys2003: #137, 340 boys2004: #132, 376 boys2005: #137, 368 boys2006: #157, 315 boys2007: #174, 287 boys2008: #173, 292 boys2009: #215, 211 boys2010: #213, 229 boys2011: #263, 182 boys2012: #259, 183 boys2013: #285, 161 boys2014: #305, 150 boys2015: #286, 169 boys2016: #303, 159 boys2017: #357, 131 boys2018: #343, 133 boys2019: #364, 121 boys2020: #384, 111 boys2021: #489, 81 boys2022: #472, 84 boys2023: #464, 86 boys2024: #586, 65 boys2025: #602, 64 boyspeak #72, 1996#602in 2025
Show the numbers
YearRankBoys
199672898
199776806
199878767
199993554
2000103478
2001108420
2002121385
2003137340
2004132376
2005137368
2006157315
2007174287
2008173292
2009215211
2010213229
2011263182
2012259183
2013285161
2014305150
2015286169
2016303159
2017357131
2018343133
2019364121
2020384111
202148981
202247284
202346486
202458665
202560264

Source: Office for National Statistics (OGL v3)

The long view: in France

Half of the boys named Paul in France since 1925 were born in or after 1959. Peak: 1925, about 2,335 per 100,000 boys. Babies per 100,000 boys, five-year periods.

1925-1929: 2,220.8 per 100,000 boys1930-1934: 1,950.9 per 100,000 boys1935-1939: 1,597.3 per 100,000 boys1940-1944: 1,228.5 per 100,000 boys19401945-1949: 738.6 per 100,000 boys1950-1954: 521.4 per 100,000 boys1955-1959: 361.5 per 100,000 boys1960-1964: 268 per 100,000 boys19601965-1969: 192.6 per 100,000 boys1970-1974: 140.5 per 100,000 boys1975-1979: 139.5 per 100,000 boys1980-1984: 198.6 per 100,000 boys19801985-1989: 348.7 per 100,000 boys1990-1994: 618.2 per 100,000 boys1995-1999: 923 per 100,000 boys2000-2004: 987.8 per 100,000 boys20002005-2009: 847.7 per 100,000 boys2010-2014: 818.7 per 100,000 boys2015-2019: 870.8 per 100,000 boys2020-2024: 640.1 per 100,000 boys20202025: 569.9 per 100,000 boys20251925-1929: about 1 in 45 boys
Show the numbers
YearsPer 100,000 boys
1925–19292,220.8
1930–19341,950.9
1935–19391,597.3
1940–19441,228.5
1945–1949738.6
1950–1954521.4
1955–1959361.5
1960–1964268
1965–1969192.6
1970–1974140.5
1975–1979139.5
1980–1984198.6
1985–1989348.7
1990–1994618.2
1995–1999923
2000–2004987.8
2005–2009847.7
2010–2014818.7
2015–2019870.8
2020–2024640.1
2025569.9

Source: INSEE, Fichier des prénoms (édition 2025) (Licence Ouverte / Etalab 2.0). Dark bar: the period holding the median birth year.

Brothers and middle names for Paul

Brother names

Names that rose and fell with Paul, from the same generation, with no clashing sounds.

  1. 1 in 1,038, England and Wales

  2. 1 in 130, Ireland

  3. 1 in 486, England and Wales

  4. 1 in 56, Poland

  5. 1 in 145, Ireland

  6. 1 in 622, England and Wales

  7. 1 in 487, Northern Ireland

  8. 1 in 552, Northern Ireland

  9. 1 in 264, England and Wales

  10. 1 in 123, Catalonia

All 40 brother names for Paul

Middle names

Scored for rhythm against Paul's 1 syllable and for long, steady use.

  1. 1 in 86, England and Wales

  2. 1 in 187, England and Wales

  3. 1 in 103, England and Wales

  4. 1 in 118, England and Wales

  5. 1 in 105, Ireland

  6. 1 in 130, Scotland

  7. 1 in 67, England and Wales

  8. 1 in 62, Poland

Full-name check

Paul Oliver

Syllables 1-3Initials P.O.No sound clashes between the parts.

All 40 middle names for Paul

Sisters for Paul: Diana, Josephine, Elisabeth, and 5 more
  1. DianaRose and fell with Paul · Same generation as Paul
  2. JosephineRose and fell with Paul · Same generation as Paul
  3. ElisabethRose and fell with Paul · Same generation as Paul
  4. RosalieRose and fell with Paul · As common as Paul
  5. MarieRose and fell with Paul · As common as Paul
  6. AnneRose and fell with Paul · Same generation as Paul
  7. JaneRose and fell with Paul · Same generation as Paul
  8. CatherineRose and fell with Paul · Same generation as Paul

Girls' names from the same engine, over the girls' lists of the same publishers.

Moved with Paul

The boy names whose popularity rose and fell most like Paul's across every region and decade we hold.

  1. Rare across France, the UK, Italy, and 18 more places.

  2. Rare across the UK, Italy, Poland, and 14 more places.

  3. Rare across France, the UK, Italy, and 18 more places.

  4. Rare across France, the UK, Poland, and 18 more places.

  5. Rare across the UK, Italy, Poland, and 15 more places.

  6. Rare across France, the UK, Italy, and 12 more places.

  7. Rare in France, Italy, Poland, and 12 more places.

  8. Rare in Italy, Poland, Israel, and 15 more places.

Famous people named Paul

Paul McCartney, Paul Cézanne, and 6 more

From Wikidata, ranked by how many Wikipedia language editions have an article on them. People: Wikidata (CC0). Links go to Wikipedia in this page's language when an article exists, else English.

Questions about Paul

How popular is Paul in Ontario?

Paul ranked #264 in Ontario in 2024, given to 51 boys, about 1 in 1,174.

Is Paul rising in popularity?

Not overall: it is falling in more places than it is rising. Rising in 3 of the 19 regions we can compare over five years, falling in 9. Rising in: British Columbia, Quebec, and Catalonia.

What does Paul mean?

Paul means “small”, according to Wiktionary.

How many syllables does Paul have?

Paul has 1 syllable: PAWL.

Every rank and count on this page comes from an official birth register. How these figures are computed.

Meanings, origins and people: Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0), Wikidata (CC0).

The 42 birth registers behind these figures

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Kept names collect here.

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