Colin

Primarily a boy's name · 100% boys

Meaning

Colin is an English-language masculine given name. It has two distinct origins: A diminutive form of "Colle", itself an Old French short form of the name Nicolas. This name, but not the anglicized Gaelic name, is also found in the spelling Collin.

From Wikipedia

Colin first appears in the data in 1880 and has been recorded in 134 different years as a boy's name. Its single biggest year was 2004 with 5,122 babies (rank #85 that year). In 2024 it was given to 1,035 boys (rank #334). The name has been declining over the last five years.

Numerology of Colin

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

8Destiny numberThe achieverDriven, capable, comfortable wielding influence.Sum of every letter. The overall character a name carries.
6Soul urgeThe carerNurturing, responsible, family at the centre.Sum of the vowels — what's said to drive the heart.
11PersonalityThe visionary (master)Intuitive and inspirational — a heightened 2.Sum of the consonants — the outer impression.

133,202

Total babies (all years)

134

Years in the data

5,122

Peak in a single year

Popularity Over Time — Boys

Also a character in

In Bridgerton: Colin Bridgerton — third brother, traveller

Famous people named Colin

Colin Powellsecurity advisor · b. 1937
Colin Firthfilm actor · b. 1960
Colin Farrellfilm actor · b. 1976
Colin MacLaurinmathematician · b. 1698
Colin Morganfilm actor · b. 1986

Share your Colin 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 Colin in 2024

Other boys' names starting with C

Year-by-Year Detail

Rank is among all boys' names registered that year.

Year	Babies	Rank
1880	6	#833
1881	5	#894
1882	5	#965
1883	5	#924
1885	6	#853
1886	7	#780
1887	6	#840
1889	6	#896
1890	6	#910
1895	5	#1,113
1896	6	#1,004
1897	8	#802
1898	5	#1,160
1902	5	#1,176
1904	8	#896
1905	5	#1,270
1907	6	#1,226
1908	5	#1,423
1909	5	#1,499
1910	5	#1,641
1911	7	#1,415
1912	12	#1,435
1913	17	#1,267
1914	23	#1,230
1915	31	#1,163
1916	42	#989
1917	42	#1,006
1918	45	#997
1919	43	#1,036
1920	42	#1,093
1921	35	#1,232
1922	34	#1,244
1923	43	#1,088
1924	41	#1,121
1925	39	#1,126
1926	45	#1,036
1927	41	#1,115
1928	52	#939
1929	40	#1,095
1930	43	#1,056
1931	28	#1,309
1932	44	#995
1933	50	#876
1934	64	#771
1935	54	#852
1936	46	#908
1937	52	#847
1938	55	#837
1939	55	#820
1940	58	#822
1941	75	#713
1942	349	#323
1943	320	#345
1944	237	#394
1945	125	#535
1946	148	#526
1947	176	#510
1948	221	#448
1949	210	#456
1950	195	#476
1951	194	#485
1952	198	#501
1953	213	#481
1954	244	#465
1955	256	#462
1956	286	#446
1957	269	#474
1958	281	#472
1959	323	#443
1960	294	#464
1961	357	#419
1962	350	#428
1963	392	#406
1964	391	#404
1965	453	#360
1966	403	#376
1967	445	#355
1968	502	#343
1969	579	#320
1970	624	#314
1971	658	#300
1972	566	#321
1973	561	#313
1974	667	#282
1975	706	#273
1976	790	#250
1977	827	#248
1978	948	#223
1979	1,141	#207
1980	1,196	#204
1981	1,227	#202
1982	1,537	#171
1983	1,557	#166
1984	1,768	#152
1985	1,738	#156
1986	1,690	#158
1987	2,098	#134
1988	2,258	#131
1989	2,604	#126
1990	2,782	#122
1991	2,294	#139
1992	2,630	#126
1993	2,897	#121
1994	2,815	#124
1995	2,630	#134
1996	2,953	#126
1997	3,099	#125
1998	3,076	#122
1999	3,080	#119
2000	3,255	#117
2001	3,170	#125
2002	3,315	#116
2003	4,876	#88
2004	5,122	#85
2005	4,532	#95
2006	3,861	#111
2007	3,608	#119
2008	3,732	#114
2009	3,657	#113
2010	3,489	#111
2011	3,265	#121
2012	3,022	#124
2013	3,041	#125
2014	2,883	#142
2015	2,424	#172
2016	2,052	#198
2017	1,666	#228
2018	1,479	#249
2019	1,394	#260
2020	1,176	#287
2021	1,288	#269
2022	1,170	#293
2023	1,004	#334
2024	1,035	#334