Peterson
- Gender
- Boy
- Say it
- PEE-ter-sun
- Origin
- English
- US rank, 2025
- #8,239 for boys
Peterson is a boys' name of English origin, meaning “son of Peter”. In 2025 it ranked 8,239th for boys in the US (9 babies).
What does Peterson mean?
English: patronymic surname, also common in Scandinavian forms
“son of Peter”
Peter comes from Greek petros 'stone', the name Jesus gave the apostle Simon.
Is Peterson a girl's or a boy's name?
Peterson is a boys' name. In 2025, it was given to 9 boys in the US. Too few girls were given it to be listed.
How popular is Peterson in the US?
- Rank in 2025
- #8,239among boys
- Babies in 2025
- 9about 1 in 190,000 boys
- Five-year trend
- Too rare to calltoo few babies to tell
- Same name in a class
- under 1%chance among 15 boys
In 2025, 9 boys in the US were named Peterson, making it the 8,239th most popular name for boys. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 8,062nd. Its busiest year was 1989, with 28 boys. It first appears in the records in 1950.
Half of all the boys named Peterson in the US since 1880 were born between 1982 and 2006, the years shaded on the chart below.
Peterson in the US, year by year
| Year | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 9 | #8,239 |
| 2024 | 9 | #8,307 |
| 2023 | 6 | #10,815 |
| 2022 | 11 | #7,256 |
| 2021 | 9 | #8,161 |
| 2020 | 9 | #8,062 |
| 2019 | 10 | #7,638 |
| 2018 | 7 | #9,664 |
| 2017 | 14 | #6,056 |
| 2016 | 12 | #6,721 |
| 2015 | 10 | #7,486 |
| 2014 | 10 | #7,557 |
| 2013 | 11 | #7,021 |
| 2012 | 14 | #5,995 |
| 2011 | 14 | #5,939 |
| 2010 | 12 | #6,692 |
| 2009 | 9 | #8,305 |
| 2008 | 9 | #8,319 |
| 2007 | 19 | #4,806 |
| 2006 | 12 | #6,455 |
| 2005 | 9 | #7,633 |
| 2004 | 17 | #4,788 |
| 2003 | 12 | #5,870 |
| 2002 | 11 | #6,081 |
| 2001 | 21 | #3,837 |
| 2000 | 24 | #3,417 |
| 1999 | 17 | #4,157 |
| 1998 | 17 | #4,015 |
| 1997 | 16 | #4,054 |
| 1996 | 15 | #4,179 |
| 1995 | 16 | #3,848 |
| 1994 | 21 | #3,209 |
| 1993 | 22 | #3,036 |
| 1992 | 17 | #3,597 |
| 1991 | 16 | #3,629 |
| 1990 | 18 | #3,303 |
| 1989 | 28 | #2,353 |
| 1988 | 21 | #2,677 |
| 1987 | 15 | #3,197 |
| 1986 | 24 | #2,288 |
| 1985 | 13 | #3,398 |
| 1984 | 14 | #3,105 |
| 1983 | 14 | #3,070 |
| 1982 | 22 | #2,268 |
| 1981 | 15 | #2,896 |
| 1980 | 12 | #3,429 |
| 1979 | 14 | #3,017 |
| 1978 | 12 | #3,214 |
| 1977 | 16 | #2,664 |
| 1976 | 0 | – |
| 1975 | 0 | – |
| 1974 | 5 | #5,225 |
| 1973 | 8 | #3,692 |
| 1972 | 0 | – |
| 1971 | 8 | #3,656 |
| 1970 | 6 | #4,228 |
| 1969 | 0 | – |
| 1968 | 7 | #3,364 |
| 1967 | 0 | – |
| 1966 | 5 | #3,946 |
| 1965 | 6 | #3,535 |
| 1964 | 11 | #2,545 |
| 1963 | 10 | #2,672 |
| 1962 | 0 | – |
| 1961 | 6 | #3,650 |
| 1960 | 5 | #4,036 |
| 1959 | 0 | – |
| 1958 | 8 | #3,031 |
| 1957 | 6 | #3,550 |
| 1956 | 6 | #3,533 |
| 1955 | 7 | #3,199 |
| 1954 | 5 | #3,825 |
| 1953 | 0 | – |
| 1952 | 0 | – |
| 1951 | 0 | – |
| 1950 | 5 | #3,678 |
Nicknames for Peterson
Names like Peterson
Names given in the same years and the same naming tradition, with a similar sound.
Jameson Preston Mason Harrison Jackson Tyson Paxton Weston Colton Peyton Ashton Bryson
More English names
Lily Evelyn Hudson Ivy Harper Grace Violet Willow Daisy Poppy Riley Oakley Cooper Ruby Hallie Hazel
Sources
Figures from 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, “Peterson: name meaning, origin and popularity”, https://www.nameling.co.uk/names/peterson, updated 20 October 2026.