Fun Facts About the Name Beau
- Gaining ground: Beau remained in the U.S. top 100 for 5 consecutive years, from 2021 through 2025. In 2025, it gained 9 ranking positions compared with the previous year.
- More than 66 thousand babies named Beau: U.S. records list 66,584 babies given the name Beau from 1880 through 2025. Even 1,010 girls received the name Beau - about 1 girl for every 65 boys.
What Does the Name Beau Mean?
Beau means "handsome" or "beautiful." It comes from French, where beau is the masculine form of the adjective meaning "beautiful, handsome, fine"; the feminine form is belle. The French word goes back to Latin bellus, meaning "pretty, lovely, handsome." The given name is taken directly from this French adjective, and the literal sense (good-looking) is the same as the customary sense used as a name.
Beau Name History & Origins
English has used beau as a common word since the Middle Ages. It first meant a suitor or sweetheart, and from the 17th century onward it also meant a fashionable man or dandy - the sense kept in the nickname Beau Brummell, applied to the English fashion leader George Bryan Brummell. The word entered English from Old French beau (earlier bel), from Latin bellus.
Its use as a given name is later. Beau has served chiefly as a short form of names beginning with Beau-, above all Beauregard, a French surname built from beau ("beautiful") and regard ("look, gaze"). In the United States, especially in the South, the surname became familiar through the Confederate general Pierre Gustave Toutant Beauregard, and boys given Beauregard were commonly called Beau. Beau also became a standalone given name on its own, and it appears as a short form of other Beau- names such as Beaumont. In French-speaking countries the adjective is common but the given name is not, so Beau as a personal name is mainly an English-language usage.
How Popular is the Name Beau?
Beau recorded its highest annual U.S. birth count in 2025. Beau entered the top 100 U.S. boy names in 2021.
U.S. name popularity from 1880-2025, based on SSA data. Rank shows how the name compares with other names - lower numbers mean greater popularity. Births shows how many babies received the name each year.
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #2,863 | 59 | 0.0037% |
| 2024 | #2,660 | 65 | 0.0040% |
| 2023 | #3,142 | 52 | 0.0032% |
| 2022 | #2,862 | 59 | 0.0036% |
| 2021 | #2,929 | 57 | 0.0035% |
| 2020 | #3,187 | 49 | 0.0030% |
| 2019 | #3,399 | 46 | 0.0027% |
| 2018 | #3,252 | 49 | 0.0029% |
| 2017 | #3,152 | 51 | 0.0030% |
| 2016 | #3,716 | 41 | 0.0023% |
| 2015 | #3,539 | 44 | 0.0025% |
| 2014 | #3,494 | 45 | 0.0025% |
| 2013 | #3,474 | 45 | 0.0026% |
| 2012 | #3,927 | 39 | 0.0022% |
| 2011 | #5,085 | 27 | 0.0015% |
| 2010 | #5,804 | 23 | 0.0013% |
| 2009 | #8,975 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 2008 | #8,182 | 15 | 0.0008% |
| 2007 | #6,597 | 20 | 0.0010% |
| 2006 | #6,162 | 21 | 0.0011% |
| 2005 | #8,408 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 2004 | #7,125 | 16 | 0.0009% |
| 2003 | #6,636 | 17 | 0.0009% |
| 2002 | #13,843 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 2001 | #13,744 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1999 | #11,544 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1995 | #11,960 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1994 | #13,686 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1992 | #13,518 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1991 | #11,665 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1990 | #13,199 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1989 | #8,840 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1987 | #11,484 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1986 | #7,822 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1985 | #9,414 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1984 | #9,247 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1983 | #7,376 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1982 | #6,405 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 1981 | #5,598 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 1980 | #3,516 | 23 | 0.0014% |
| 1979 | #8,121 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1977 | #9,774 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #60 | 5,165 | 0.3024% |
| 2024 | #69 | 4,694 | 0.2737% |
| 2023 | #80 | 4,098 | 0.2399% |
| 2022 | #90 | 3,955 | 0.2267% |
| 2021 | #94 | 3,815 | 0.2182% |
| 2020 | #109 | 3,344 | 0.1938% |
| 2019 | #132 | 2,932 | 0.1635% |
| 2018 | #151 | 2,597 | 0.1430% |
| 2017 | #157 | 2,511 | 0.1357% |
| 2016 | #190 | 2,124 | 0.1120% |
| 2015 | #203 | 1,980 | 0.1033% |
| 2014 | #230 | 1,634 | 0.0851% |
| 2013 | #272 | 1,300 | 0.0687% |
| 2012 | #310 | 1,069 | 0.0564% |
| 2011 | #352 | 852 | 0.0449% |
| 2010 | #375 | 766 | 0.0399% |
| 2009 | #397 | 751 | 0.0379% |
| 2008 | #396 | 749 | 0.0367% |
| 2007 | #422 | 691 | 0.0333% |
| 2006 | #437 | 624 | 0.0304% |
| 2005 | #416 | 645 | 0.0323% |
| 2004 | #402 | 649 | 0.0327% |
| 2003 | #420 | 612 | 0.0310% |
| 2002 | #504 | 452 | 0.0233% |
| 2001 | #504 | 453 | 0.0233% |
| 2000 | #467 | 507 | 0.0258% |
| 1999 | #477 | 469 | 0.0244% |
| 1998 | #449 | 498 | 0.0261% |
| 1997 | #466 | 469 | 0.0249% |
| 1996 | #427 | 528 | 0.0279% |
| 1995 | #440 | 520 | 0.0273% |
| 1994 | #396 | 587 | 0.0304% |
| 1993 | #423 | 535 | 0.0273% |
| 1992 | #390 | 585 | 0.0293% |
| 1991 | #351 | 693 | 0.0343% |
| 1990 | #337 | 732 | 0.0356% |
| 1989 | #384 | 574 | 0.0287% |
| 1988 | #350 | 594 | 0.0310% |
| 1987 | #375 | 514 | 0.0275% |
| 1986 | #308 | 664 | 0.0361% |
| 1985 | #310 | 661 | 0.0358% |
| 1984 | #292 | 698 | 0.0387% |
| 1983 | #333 | 558 | 0.0311% |
| 1982 | #296 | 677 | 0.0373% |
| 1981 | #229 | 1,027 | 0.0573% |
| 1980 | #203 | 1,207 | 0.0677% |
| 1979 | #299 | 666 | 0.0387% |
| 1978 | #352 | 478 | 0.0291% |
| 1977 | #355 | 489 | 0.0298% |
| 1976 | #401 | 373 | 0.0238% |
| 1975 | #505 | 251 | 0.0161% |
| 1974 | #557 | 207 | 0.0132% |
| 1973 | #581 | 186 | 0.0119% |
| 1972 | #635 | 155 | 0.0096% |
| 1971 | #626 | 175 | 0.0099% |
| 1970 | #627 | 167 | 0.0090% |
| 1969 | #817 | 89 | 0.0050% |
| 1968 | #1,018 | 53 | 0.0030% |
| 1967 | #968 | 56 | 0.0032% |
| 1966 | #1,007 | 52 | 0.0029% |
| 1965 | #1,081 | 47 | 0.0025% |
| 1964 | #1,200 | 41 | 0.0021% |
| 1963 | #1,307 | 36 | 0.0018% |
| 1962 | #1,172 | 44 | 0.0021% |
| 1961 | #1,264 | 39 | 0.0018% |
| 1960 | #2,132 | 15 | 0.0007% |
| 1959 | #1,722 | 22 | 0.0010% |
| 1958 | #2,104 | 15 | 0.0007% |
| 1956 | #2,987 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1955 | #1,729 | 20 | 0.0010% |
| 1954 | #3,481 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1953 | #1,715 | 20 | 0.0010% |
| 1952 | #2,159 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 1951 | #2,676 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1950 | #2,448 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 1949 | #3,734 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1948 | #3,348 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1947 | #3,400 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1946 | #2,410 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 1945 | #3,373 | 5 | 0.0004% |
| 1944 | #3,131 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1943 | #3,586 | 5 | 0.0004% |
| 1942 | #3,606 | 5 | 0.0004% |
| 1941 | #2,090 | 12 | 0.0010% |
| 1940 | #2,681 | 8 | 0.0007% |
| 1932 | #3,821 | 5 | 0.0005% |
Name popularity over more than a century, based on Social Security Administration data. Gaps in the chart indicate years when the name does not appear in the published records.
Explore Name Lists Featuring Beau
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How the Name Beau Shapes Your Personality and Life?
You can go to great heights and equally great depths. You are emotional and fixed in your opinions. You are hospitable, sentimental, often psychic, sometimes moody. You are ruled by love and the lack of it and feel a need to be encouraged and appreciated. You have an eventful, exciting life. You are versatile and have the ability to learn easily.
You are always looking for an opportunity to achieve financial and emotional security. You are basically peacemaker. You understand the law of harmony and desire to balance your life with those around you. You may feel incomplete without someone to share your love, ideals, wealth or work. You can be very sensitive and could appear a bit shy and perceptive. You have developed intuition, patience and the ability to nurture others. You can achieve the state of happiness if you are willing to accept your needs in a complimentary relationship and go to create them.
✦ Beau's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Beau's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.