Holden
- Gender
- Boy
- Say it
- HOHL-den
- Origin
- English
- UK rank, 2025
- #1,964 for boys
- US rank, 2025
- #297 for boys
Holden is a boys' name of English origin, meaning “hollow valley”. In 2025 it ranked 1,964th for boys in the UK (13 babies) and 297th for boys in the US (1,140 babies).
What does Holden mean?
English: English surname from a place name
“hollow valley”
Holden Caulfield is the teenage narrator of J. D. Salinger's novel The Catcher in the Rye.
More on Wiktionary.
Is Holden a girl's or a boy's name?
Holden is a boys' name. In 2025, it was given to 13 boys in the UK and 6 girls and 1,140 boys in the US.
How popular is Holden in the UK?
- Rank in 2025
- #1,964among boys
- Babies in 2025
- 13about 1 in 23,000 boys
- Five-year trend
- Fallingdown 35% in five years
- Same name in a class
- under 1%chance among 15 boys
In 2025, 13 boys in the UK were named Holden, making it the 1,964th most popular name for boys. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 1,105th. Its busiest year was 2020, with 27 boys.
Half of all the boys named Holden in the UK since 1996 were born between 2011 and 2021, the years shaded on the chart below.
Among boys in 2025, it was 1,894th in England and Wales.
Holden in the UK, year by year
| Year | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 13 | #1,964 |
| 2024 | 18 | #1,528 |
| 2023 | 13 | #1,917 |
| 2022 | 17 | #1,561 |
| 2021 | 22 | #1,298 |
| 2020 | 27 | #1,105 |
| 2019 | 16 | #1,608 |
| 2018 | 25 | #1,173 |
| 2017 | 17 | #1,563 |
| 2016 | 14 | #1,804 |
| 2015 | 8 | #2,614 |
| 2014 | 4 | #4,063 |
| 2013 | 9 | #2,334 |
| 2012 | 12 | #1,956 |
| 2011 | 11 | #2,011 |
| 2010 | 4 | #4,026 |
| 2009 | 16 | #1,507 |
| 2008 | 12 | #1,810 |
| 2007 | 8 | #2,337 |
| 2006 | 5 | #3,013 |
| 2005 | 5 | #2,885 |
| 2004 | 3 | #3,792 |
| 2003 | 4 | #2,990 |
| 2002 | 0 | – |
| 2001 | 6 | #2,049 |
| 2000 | 4 | #2,612 |
| 1999 | 4 | #2,513 |
| 1998 | 0 | – |
| 1997 | 0 | – |
| 1996 | 1 | #3,776 |
How popular is Holden in the US?
- Rank in 2025
- #297among boys
- Babies in 2025
- 1,140about 1 in 1,500 boys
- Five-year trend
- Fallingdown 27% in five years
- Same name in a class
- under 1%chance among 15 boys
In 2025, 1,140 boys in the US were named Holden, making it the 297th most popular name for boys. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 227th. Its busiest year was 2018, with 1,732 boys. It first appears in the records in 1902. 6 girls were also named Holden in 2025 (13,203rd for girls).
2025 had fewer boys named Holden than any year since 2011.
Half of all the boys named Holden in the US since 1880 were born between 2006 and 2019, the years shaded on the chart below.
Holden in the US, year by year
| Year | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 1,140 | #297 |
| 2024 | 1,209 | #281 |
| 2023 | 1,176 | #286 |
| 2022 | 1,219 | #285 |
| 2021 | 1,507 | #236 |
| 2020 | 1,648 | #227 |
| 2019 | 1,468 | #250 |
| 2018 | 1,732 | #217 |
| 2017 | 1,531 | #242 |
| 2016 | 1,356 | #270 |
| 2015 | 1,254 | #291 |
| 2014 | 1,218 | #291 |
| 2013 | 1,206 | #289 |
| 2012 | 1,177 | #296 |
| 2011 | 1,114 | #299 |
| 2010 | 1,011 | #316 |
| 2009 | 955 | #334 |
| 2008 | 877 | #357 |
| 2007 | 812 | #378 |
| 2006 | 777 | #385 |
| 2005 | 830 | #356 |
| 2004 | 747 | #371 |
| 2003 | 619 | #415 |
| 2002 | 614 | #413 |
| 2001 | 547 | #442 |
| 2000 | 527 | #451 |
| 1999 | 542 | #430 |
| 1998 | 562 | #418 |
| 1997 | 451 | #477 |
| 1996 | 323 | #565 |
| 1995 | 299 | #595 |
| 1994 | 298 | #601 |
| 1993 | 267 | #629 |
| 1992 | 224 | #690 |
| 1991 | 234 | #660 |
| 1990 | 182 | #751 |
| 1989 | 146 | #816 |
| 1988 | 143 | #793 |
| 1987 | 107 | #907 |
| 1986 | 58 | #1,268 |
| 1985 | 16 | #2,939 |
| 1984 | 17 | #2,705 |
| 1983 | 7 | #4,904 |
| 1982 | 12 | #3,481 |
| 1981 | 9 | #4,151 |
| 1980 | 11 | #3,614 |
| 1979 | 6 | #5,353 |
| 1978 | 12 | #3,214 |
| 1977 | 5 | #5,843 |
| 1976 | 7 | #4,416 |
| 1975 | 8 | #3,939 |
| 1974 | 0 | – |
| 1973 | 6 | #4,503 |
| 1972 | 0 | – |
| 1971 | 0 | – |
| 1970 | 0 | – |
| 1969 | 9 | #3,061 |
| 1968 | 8 | #3,106 |
| 1967 | 0 | – |
| 1966 | 6 | #3,535 |
| 1965 | 9 | #2,778 |
| 1964 | 5 | #4,038 |
| 1963 | 9 | #2,857 |
| 1962 | 8 | #3,039 |
| 1961 | 8 | #3,095 |
| 1960 | 8 | #3,075 |
| 1959 | 0 | – |
| 1958 | 9 | #2,816 |
| 1957 | 7 | #3,255 |
| 1956 | 7 | #3,214 |
| 1955 | 7 | #3,199 |
| 1954 | 5 | #3,825 |
| 1953 | 6 | #3,423 |
| 1952 | 0 | – |
| 1951 | 6 | #3,362 |
| 1950 | 0 | – |
| 1949 | 5 | #3,688 |
| 1948 | 0 | – |
| 1947 | 5 | #3,731 |
| 1946 | 0 | – |
| 1945 | 0 | – |
| 1944 | 0 | – |
| 1943 | 5 | #3,536 |
| 1942 | 6 | #3,211 |
| 1941 | 5 | #3,504 |
| 1940 | 6 | #3,130 |
| 1939 | 0 | – |
| 1938 | 5 | #3,533 |
| 1937 | 5 | #3,516 |
| 1936 | 5 | #3,548 |
| 1935 | 5 | #3,644 |
| 1934 | 0 | – |
| 1933 | 0 | – |
| 1932 | 6 | #3,360 |
| 1931 | 8 | #2,863 |
| 1930 | 0 | – |
| 1929 | 5 | #3,957 |
| 1928 | 9 | #2,842 |
| 1927 | 6 | #3,778 |
| 1926 | 0 | – |
| 1925 | 0 | – |
| 1924 | 5 | #4,345 |
| 1923 | 11 | #2,613 |
| 1922 | 11 | #2,629 |
| 1921 | 11 | #2,631 |
| 1920 | 10 | #2,764 |
| 1919 | 0 | – |
| 1918 | 5 | #4,178 |
| 1917 | 5 | #3,979 |
| 1916 | 0 | – |
| 1915 | 6 | #3,391 |
| 1914 | 7 | #2,650 |
| 1913 | 5 | #2,820 |
| 1912 | 0 | – |
| 1911 | 0 | – |
| 1910 | 0 | – |
| 1909 | 0 | – |
| 1908 | 0 | – |
| 1907 | 0 | – |
| 1906 | 0 | – |
| 1905 | 0 | – |
| 1904 | 0 | – |
| 1903 | 0 | – |
| 1902 | 5 | #1,136 |
Names like Holden
Names given in the same years and the same naming tradition, with a similar sound.
Hudson Hunter Grayson Jaxon Mason Marley Harrison Cooper Carter Hayden Noah Jayden
Other spellings of Holden
Names related to Holden
More English names
Lily Evelyn Ivy Harper Grace Violet Willow Daisy Poppy Riley Oakley Ruby Hallie Hazel River Ellie
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, “Holden: name meaning, origin and popularity”, https://www.nameling.co.uk/names/holden, updated 20 October 2026.