Ben
A boys’ name of Hebrew origin, meaning a form of Benjamin; son of the right hand.
How Ben has moved
View as table
| Year | US rank |
|---|---|
| 2015 | #737 |
| 2016 | #703 |
| 2017 | #730 |
| 2018 | #692 |
| 2019 | #719 |
| 2020 | #767 |
| 2021 | #761 |
| 2022 | #770 |
| 2023 | #796 |
| 2024 | #801 |
| 2025 | #843 |
Ben by the numbers
In 2025, 79 babies in England and Wales were named Ben. In the US, 325 were, though that figure is from 2017, the most recent full year we hold.
It is used at about the same rate on both sides of the Atlantic.
Its American peak was 1,276 babies in 1918, making it a 1910s name.
At its height, in 1890, about 1 in 330 American boys born that year was called Ben.
Names that come from Ben
Forms of Ben in other languages, names built from it, and names that mean a son or daughter of it. Not always the same sex.
Other names that come from Benjamin
Like Ben, each of these traces back to Benjamin: a form of it, a name built from it, or a son or daughter of it. Not always the same sex.
- Benjaminson of the right hand13,741 in the US (2017)
- Bennyson of the right hand; diminutive of Benjamin69 in England and Wales (2025)
- Benjison of the right hand; a form of Benjamin27 in England and Wales (2025)
- Bennieson of the right hand; form of Benjamin13 in England and Wales (2025)
- Binyominson of the right hand; form of Benjamin10 in England and Wales (2025)
- Jaminright hand; favoured; a form of Benjamin41 in the US (2017)
- Benyaminson of the right hand; variant of Benjamin5 in England and Wales (2025)
- Benjimanson of the right hand; variant spelling of Benjamin17 in the US (2017)
Spelled almost the same
Other names in the records within a letter or two of Ben. Close spellings are not always related names, but they are usually worth seeing together.