Philip

Philip - A very unique male name

Philip appeared on the charts for the first time in 1910 on position #85. In this article you'll learn the history of this name, statistics, see famous people named Philip and more.
Are you having a baby or looking to learn more about the name Philip? Our experts and editorial staff have gathered trends and insights for 30,000+ baby names over the last 100 years -- And on this page you will learn everything you ever wanted to know about the name Philip. The baby boy name Philip was given to 522 baby boys in 2025, ranking #537 on the national boy baby name top chart.


With that position 1 in 2,809 baby boys were given this name - making this a very unique male name according to our Popularity Score algorithm. Philip peaked in popularity 85 years ago in 1941 on position 52.

Famous with this name

How would you rate Philip, 1-5?

Philip is currently topping the charts in...

Did you know that popularity can vary a lot between states? Philip is currently topping the baby name charts in Massachusetts at position #343 - and is the least popular in Colorado at position #931.

Why care about state specific baby name charts? It could be that a name that is very popular on the national overall charts is less (or even more) popular where you live. So make sure you check out the state specific charts below and find out how popular or unique Philip is where you live.

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Philip origin and meaning

Greek

'Lover of horses' — from Greek philos, 'loving', and hippos, 'horse'

Philippos was the name of kings of Macedon, including Alexander the Great's father, and Philip is one of the apostles. A steady classic for centuries, it peaked in the US in 1954 and declines slowly.

Attested etymology

Philip is a 6 letter name with 2 syllables.

To see famous people named Philip, pop culture references for the name Philip and nicknames & variations - visit Nameberry or Wikipedia.

Similar to Philip

We've found the following names that sound similar to Philip, sorted by popularity.

Phillip / Philippe / Phillipe / Philipp / Philipe /

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Name statistics

Most parents-to-be know if they want a popular or unique name, and with these charts and data tables you can easily get a better understanding of how popular or unique this name is.

With a quick glance you can easily tell if this name is increasing or declining in popularity - But note that its current popularity can actually differ a lot from state to state.

Chart position per year (visualized)

Chart position per state (visualized)

Chart position per year (table view)

Chart position per state (table view)

Even more about Philip

These are some of the common questions you may want to have answered to know if this is the perfect name for your baby.

Is Philip a common or unique name?

By analyzing the number of births and frequency of this name we've determined that it's currently a very unique male name.

What is the number of syllables for the name Philip?

2 syllables. Why is this important? One of the things that makes a baby name sound good and have a nice rythm is the number of syllables - and especially the number of syllables along with the syllable count for your last name. A simple rule is to avoid having the same number of syllables in your first, middle and last name.

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Pronunciation

FIL-ip · /ˈfɪlɪp/

Around the world

• Felipe (Spanish) — The Spanish form
• Philippe (French) — The French form
• Philipp (German) — The German form
• Filippo (Italian) — The Italian form

Spellings and nicknames

• Phillip — The double-l spelling, also common

Nicknames: PhilPip

Famous bearers

• Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh — Consort of Queen Elizabeth II for over 70 years (1921–2021) Contemporary
• Philip Seymour Hoffman — American actor, Oscar winner for Capote (1967–2014) Contemporary

Style

BiblicalClassicRoyal

Why parents choose it

A true pan-European classic — royal, biblical and literary, yet never overused in the US.

Worth knowing

• Philip or Phillip — the one-l/two-l split will dog paperwork; Phil can feel dated next to the full name.