first name
VAL
of 53,615 first names recorded in the 2020 Census
Of the 7,617 people named Val, 69.8% reported their origin as White, 10.9% as Hispanic or Latino and 9.9% as Black. 59% are male. These count how people described themselves on the 2020 Census, not where the name comes from.
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Val peaked in 1956, when 253 babies got the name.
At least 7,406 babies have been given the name since 1882. 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.
Val by decade
Among all names given to American babies, its best decade was the 1950s, when it ranked #1,113. The largest share of babies named Val, 48.1%, were born during the baby boom (1946–1964).
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 Val is most common
Compared with all babies born in each state since 1910, Val has been most common in Utah (32×), Idaho (17×), and California (2.6×), and least common in New York (0.76×).
2,761 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 Val
Spelled almost the same
4 first names in the 2020 Census spelled within a letter or two of Val, most common first.
Also a last name
As a last name, Val ranks #28,526 of 156,621, with 889 people. See Val as a last name
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🔎 VAL 🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦⬜⬜ 1 in 39,652 Americans Rarer than 81.3% of us Peaked in 1956 with 253 babies Beat that 👇 https://howrareismy.name/first/val/