first name
STERLING
of 53,615 first names recorded in the 2020 Census
Of the 23,791 people named Sterling, 61.2% reported their origin as White, 23.8% as Black and 6.3% as two or more races. 90.2% are male. These count how people described themselves on the 2020 Census, not where the name comes from.
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Sterling peaked in 2025, when 1,162 babies got the name.
At least 41,197 babies have been given the name since 1880. Years SSA withheld, because fewer than 5 were born, are skipped rather than drawn as zero. * 2025 is the newest year published and it undercounts: a card application is filed some time after a birth.
Sterling by decade
Among all names given to American babies, its best decade was the 2020s, when it ranked #650. The largest share of babies named Sterling, 27.6%, were born in 2013 or later.
Rank counts both sexes together, among every name SSA recorded that decade; the number under it is births. The 2020s run only to 2025. Generation years follow Pew Research Center, which has not named a generation after 2012.
Where Sterling is most common
Compared with all babies born in each state since 1910, Sterling has been most common in Utah (4.1×), Louisiana (2.2×), and Virginia (2×), and least common in Connecticut (0.11×).
32,974 births recorded by state, 1910–2025. 2× means twice as common as nationally. States with fewer than 30 such births are left blank, and SSA withholds any year with fewer than 5 in a state, so small states read low.
Either side of Sterling
Spelled almost the same
7 first names in the 2020 Census spelled within a letter or two of Sterling, most common first.
Also a last name
As a last name, Sterling ranks #1,356 of 156,621, with 25,411 people. See Sterling as a last name
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🔎 STERLING 🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦⬜⬜⬜ 1 in 12,695 Americans Rarer than 74.6% of us Peaked in 2025 with 1,162 babies Beat that 👇 https://howrareismy.name/first/sterling/