Bowie
- Gender
- Mostly boys
- Say it
- BOH-ee
- Origin
- Scottish
- UK rank, 2025
- #386 for boys
- US rank, 2025
- #1,227 for boys
Bowie is a name of Scottish origin, meaning “yellow, fair-haired”. In 2025 it ranked 386th for boys in the UK (121 babies) and 1,227th for boys in the US (164 babies).
What does Bowie mean?
Scottish: surname from Gaelic buidhe
“yellow, fair-haired”
David Bowie took his stage name from the Bowie knife, named after the frontiersman Jim Bowie.
Is Bowie a girl's or a boy's name?
In recent years, Bowie has been given to girls and boys, mostly boys. In 2025, it was given to 22 girls and 121 boys in the UK and 117 girls and 164 boys in the US.
How popular is Bowie in the UK?
- Rank in 2025
- 386th among boys
- Babies in 2025
- 121 about 1 in 2,500 boys
- Five-year trend
- Rising up 97% in five years
- Same name in a class
- under 1% chance among 15 boys
In 2025, 121 boys in the UK were named Bowie, making it the 386th most popular name for boys. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 661st. 22 girls were also named Bowie in 2025 (1,460th for girls).
It has been given to more boys each year for the last 6 years. 2025 had the most boys named Bowie of any year since it first appeared, in 2004.
Half of all the boys named Bowie in the UK since 1996 were born between 2018 and 2024, the years shaded on the chart below.
In 2025, 15% of the babies named Bowie in the UK were girls.
Among boys in 2025, it was 379th in England and Wales, 367th in Scotland and 395th in Northern Ireland.
Bowie in the UK, year by year
| Year | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 121 | #386 |
| 2024 | 102 | #438 |
| 2023 | 88 | #505 |
| 2022 | 86 | #512 |
| 2021 | 81 | #539 |
| 2020 | 58 | #661 |
| 2019 | 47 | #764 |
| 2018 | 53 | #720 |
| 2017 | 40 | #879 |
| 2016 | 39 | #884 |
| 2015 | 13 | #1,888 |
| 2014 | 5 | #3,529 |
| 2013 | 6 | #3,096 |
| 2012 | 9 | #2,382 |
| 2011 | 5 | #3,446 |
| 2010 | 5 | #3,478 |
| 2009 | 4 | #3,909 |
| 2008 | 5 | #3,305 |
| 2007 | 6 | #2,873 |
| 2006 | 0 | – |
| 2005 | 3 | #3,992 |
| 2004 | 3 | #3,792 |
How popular is Bowie in the US?
- Rank in 2025
- 1,227th among boys
- Babies in 2025
- 164 about 1 in 10,000 boys
- Five-year trend
- Steady down 4% in five years
- Same name in a class
- under 1% chance among 15 boys
In 2025, 164 boys in the US were named Bowie, making it the 1,227th most popular name for boys. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 1,119th. Its busiest year was 2021, with 237 boys. It first appears in the records in 1920. 117 girls were also named Bowie in 2025 (1,733rd for girls).
It has been given to fewer boys each year for the last 4 years. 2025 had fewer boys named Bowie than any year since 2019.
Half of all the boys named Bowie in the US since 1880 were born between 2016 and 2022, the years shaded on the chart below.
In 2025, 42% of the babies named Bowie in the US were girls.
Bowie in the US, year by year
| Year | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 164 | #1,227 |
| 2024 | 167 | #1,211 |
| 2023 | 194 | #1,098 |
| 2022 | 198 | #1,093 |
| 2021 | 237 | #951 |
| 2020 | 176 | #1,119 |
| 2019 | 159 | #1,202 |
| 2018 | 210 | #984 |
| 2017 | 156 | #1,191 |
| 2016 | 134 | #1,329 |
| 2015 | 54 | #2,385 |
| 2014 | 59 | #2,254 |
| 2013 | 26 | #3,862 |
| 2012 | 24 | #4,128 |
| 2011 | 30 | #3,509 |
| 2010 | 44 | #2,729 |
| 2009 | 19 | #4,920 |
| 2008 | 25 | #4,041 |
| 2007 | 18 | #4,994 |
| 2006 | 21 | #4,366 |
| 2005 | 13 | #5,869 |
| 2004 | 9 | #7,530 |
| 2003 | 9 | #7,238 |
| 2002 | 7 | #8,449 |
| 2001 | 6 | #9,236 |
| 2000 | 6 | #9,104 |
| 1999 | 0 | – |
| 1998 | 7 | #7,553 |
| 1997 | 0 | – |
| 1996 | 5 | #9,008 |
| 1995 | 7 | #6,985 |
| 1994 | 0 | – |
| 1993 | 0 | – |
| 1992 | 0 | – |
| 1991 | 0 | – |
| 1990 | 0 | – |
| 1989 | 0 | – |
| 1988 | 5 | #7,264 |
| 1987 | 8 | #4,962 |
| 1986 | 5 | #6,715 |
| 1985 | 0 | – |
| 1984 | 6 | #5,557 |
| 1983 | 0 | – |
| 1982 | 7 | #5,001 |
| 1981 | 0 | – |
| 1980 | 0 | – |
| 1979 | 0 | – |
| 1978 | 7 | #4,552 |
| 1977 | 0 | – |
| 1976 | 0 | – |
| 1975 | 8 | #3,939 |
| 1974 | 0 | – |
| 1973 | 0 | – |
| 1972 | 0 | – |
| 1971 | 0 | – |
| 1970 | 0 | – |
| 1969 | 0 | – |
| 1968 | 0 | – |
| 1967 | 0 | – |
| 1966 | 0 | – |
| 1965 | 0 | – |
| 1964 | 0 | – |
| 1963 | 0 | – |
| 1962 | 0 | – |
| 1961 | 0 | – |
| 1960 | 0 | – |
| 1959 | 0 | – |
| 1958 | 0 | – |
| 1957 | 0 | – |
| 1956 | 0 | – |
| 1955 | 0 | – |
| 1954 | 0 | – |
| 1953 | 0 | – |
| 1952 | 0 | – |
| 1951 | 0 | – |
| 1950 | 0 | – |
| 1949 | 0 | – |
| 1948 | 0 | – |
| 1947 | 0 | – |
| 1946 | 0 | – |
| 1945 | 0 | – |
| 1944 | 0 | – |
| 1943 | 0 | – |
| 1942 | 0 | – |
| 1941 | 0 | – |
| 1940 | 0 | – |
| 1939 | 0 | – |
| 1938 | 0 | – |
| 1937 | 0 | – |
| 1936 | 0 | – |
| 1935 | 0 | – |
| 1934 | 0 | – |
| 1933 | 0 | – |
| 1932 | 0 | – |
| 1931 | 0 | – |
| 1930 | 0 | – |
| 1929 | 0 | – |
| 1928 | 0 | – |
| 1927 | 0 | – |
| 1926 | 0 | – |
| 1925 | 0 | – |
| 1924 | 0 | – |
| 1923 | 0 | – |
| 1922 | 0 | – |
| 1921 | 0 | – |
| 1920 | 5 | #4,284 |
Names like Bowie
Names given in the same years and the same naming tradition, with a similar sound.
Albie, Dougie, Brody, Lochlan, Finley, Alfie, Bodhi, Lennox, Rowan, Enzo, Atlas, Kyrie
Names related to Bowie
More Scottish names
Isla, Logan, Arabella, Cameron, Bonnie, Paisley, Carson, Maxwell, Brodie, Finlay, Blair, Skye, Knox, Dallas, Reid, Lachlan
Sources
Figures from Baby names in England and Wales (Office for National Statistics), Babies' first names (National Records of Scotland), Baby names (Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency) and Popular Baby Names (US Social Security Administration). Nameling last updated them on 20 October 2026. How the figures are worked out, and the data to download.
To cite this page: Nameling, “Bowie: name meaning, origin and popularity”, https://www.nameling.co.uk/names/bowie, updated 20 October 2026.