Milton
How to say it: MIL-tun · /ˈmɪltən/
From an Old English place name meaning 'mill town'; a surname-turned-given name associated with poet John Milton.
Milton was the 1,238th most popular boys’ name in the United States in 2025, given to 125 babies (Social Security Administration). Its busiest decade was the 1910s, its births are down about 18% in ten years, and it is projected to slip to #1,322 by 2030.
Updated · SSA 2025 data, published May 2026 · Insee 2025 data, published July 2026 · How we compute these figures
Key facts
| Rank among boys’ names, 2025 | #1,238 |
|---|---|
| Babies born in 2025 | 125 |
| Share of births | 1 in 26,522 |
| Peak decade | 1910s |
| Change over 10 years | −18% |
| Projected rank for 2030 (estimate) | #1,322 |
| In France, 2025 | #2,436 among boys’ names, 5 births |
Sources: Social Security Administration (SSA), Insee (France). How we compute these figures.
Its life, decade by decade
Milton peaked in the 1910s and is less common today.
What goes with it
In the classroom
In a class of 25 children born in 2025, the chance that another child is called Milton is about under 1 in 200.
Around the world
This spelling is used in Danish, English, Finnish, French, Norwegian, Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish.
In France: #2,436 for boys in 2025.
Famous people named Milton
- Milton Friedman (1912–2006)American economist and statistician
- Milton Obote (1925–2005)President of Uganda (1966–1971; 1980–1985)
- Milton Nascimento (born 1942)Brazilian singer-songwriter and musician
From Wikidata and Wikipedia
Good to know
- Hurricane Milton (2024) retired by WMO in April 2025 after catastrophic US damage; too recent to be dominant
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