Basil

Primarily a boy's name · 97% boys

Meaning

The name Basil comes from the male Greek name Vassilios, which first appeared during the Hellenistic period.

From Wikipedia

Basil first appears in the data in 1880 and has been recorded in 145 different years as a boy's name. Its single biggest year was 1924 with 281 babies (rank #354 that year). In 2024 it was given to 76 boys (rank #2,009). The name has been rising over the last five years.

Numerology of Basil

In Pythagorean numerology, every letter has a value from 1 to 9. Adding the letters of Basil yields these three numbers — a playful read on the name's character.

7Destiny numberThe seekerIntrospective, analytical, drawn to the unknown.Sum of every letter. The overall character a name carries.
1Soul urgeThe leaderIndependent, pioneering, drawn to going first.Sum of the vowels — what's said to drive the heart.
6PersonalityThe carerNurturing, responsible, family at the centre.Sum of the consonants — the outer impression.

13,438

Total babies (all years)

145

Years in the data

281

Peak in a single year

Popularity Over Time — Boys

Famous people named Basil

Basil Rathbonefilm actor · b. 1892
Basil Fool for Christfoolishness for Christ · b. 1468
Basil Poledourisrecording artist · b. 1945

Share your Basil story

Why did you choose this name — or what does it mean to you? Approved stories appear on this page.

More popular boys' names

Names ranked near Basil in 2024

Other boys' names starting with B

Year-by-Year Detail

Rank is among all boys' names registered that year.

Year	Babies	Rank
1880	11	#572
1881	9	#600
1882	12	#541
1883	8	#686
1884	11	#574
1885	14	#500
1886	10	#613
1887	13	#491
1888	20	#418
1889	16	#466
1890	17	#436
1891	12	#525
1892	22	#406
1893	22	#383
1894	27	#349
1895	22	#416
1896	34	#324
1897	33	#322
1898	27	#379
1899	28	#338
1900	37	#359
1901	28	#347
1902	32	#348
1903	23	#413
1904	37	#328
1905	30	#384
1906	32	#378
1907	39	#352
1908	39	#366
1909	37	#403
1910	46	#383
1911	69	#329
1912	114	#360
1913	120	#387
1914	161	#375
1915	243	#339
1916	244	#341
1917	221	#379
1918	239	#387
1919	263	#352
1920	242	#383
1921	266	#374
1922	247	#382
1923	245	#379
1924	281	#354
1925	259	#370
1926	232	#385
1927	249	#371
1928	191	#431
1929	238	#373
1930	219	#386
1931	154	#454
1932	200	#396
1933	172	#413
1934	159	#447
1935	175	#417
1936	189	#401
1937	145	#464
1938	157	#460
1939	135	#495
1940	140	#490
1941	132	#514
1942	169	#472
1943	132	#544
1944	117	#563
1945	101	#602
1946	117	#594
1947	158	#535
1948	116	#629
1949	111	#650
1950	113	#658
1951	109	#668
1952	103	#688
1953	139	#616
1954	112	#682
1955	103	#720
1956	104	#718
1957	95	#772
1958	103	#732
1959	109	#735
1960	110	#733
1961	112	#725
1962	96	#775
1963	101	#763
1964	92	#783
1965	82	#816
1966	92	#762
1967	71	#848
1968	57	#970
1969	60	#989
1970	64	#1,016
1971	66	#1,000
1972	65	#1,000
1973	57	#1,074
1974	48	#1,199
1975	58	#1,099
1976	51	#1,211
1977	62	#1,102
1978	54	#1,216
1979	52	#1,271
1980	60	#1,179
1981	51	#1,294
1982	55	#1,255
1983	78	#1,001
1984	45	#1,424
1985	45	#1,487
1986	67	#1,154
1987	61	#1,249
1988	61	#1,319
1989	49	#1,617
1990	69	#1,337
1991	67	#1,385
1992	73	#1,322
1993	67	#1,420
1994	71	#1,387
1995	65	#1,479
1996	73	#1,421
1997	54	#1,773
1998	65	#1,605
1999	56	#1,779
2000	64	#1,743
2001	60	#1,842
2002	57	#1,945
2003	57	#2,009
2004	41	#2,604
2005	48	#2,400
2006	64	#2,065
2007	58	#2,258
2008	31	#3,490
2009	56	#2,321
2010	47	#2,583
2011	44	#2,706
2012	45	#2,680
2013	56	#2,283
2014	44	#2,712
2015	52	#2,429
2016	60	#2,234
2017	59	#2,244
2018	69	#2,066
2019	71	#2,047
2020	58	#2,324
2021	74	#2,001
2022	88	#1,828
2023	74	#2,030
2024	76	#2,009