Sydney
An English surname from Saint-Denis in France, later read as Old English “wide island”; the Australian city carries the same name.
Popularity, 1880–2025
Sydney appears in the national records from the very first year, 1880. It has ranked among the top 100 names for American girls in every year from 1994 to 2013. Its biggest year was 2000, when 10,243 newborn girls received the name, ranking it No. 23 nationally. In 2025 it ranked No. 348 for girls. The name has also seen real use for boys: 9,404 of the 187,700 Americans given the name since 1880.
Related names
Other spellings on record: Sidney (108,987), Sydnee (8,255), Sydni (5,361), Sydnie (5,187), Cydney (5,170), Cydnee (953) (total births since 1880)
Explore Sydney interactively →By the decade
| Decade | Births | Best rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | 14 | No. 828 |
| 1890s | 23 | No. 1210 |
| 1900s | 84 | No. 797 |
| 1910s | 265 | No. 1102 |
| 1920s | 306 | No. 1158 |
| 1930s | 798 | No. 633 |
| 1940s | 1,512 | No. 537 |
| 1950s | 1,522 | No. 595 |
| 1960s | 1,346 | No. 760 |
| 1970s | 929 | No. 1026 |
| 1980s | 4,587 | No. 230 |
| 1990s | 55,756 | No. 23 |
| 2000s | 76,444 | No. 23 |
| 2010s | 28,084 | No. 60 |
| 2020s | 6,626 | No. 241 |
Births and rank shown for girls, the sex more often given the name. The Social Security Administration omits name–year combinations with fewer than five births.
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Data: U.S. Social Security Administration national baby-name file, 1880–2025.