| Blake | Parker | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | black OR pale — genuinely opposite meanings | Park keeper |
| Origin | english | English |
| Gender | Unisex | Unisex |
| Pronunciation | BLAYK | PAR-ker |
| Syllables | 1 | 2 |
| First appeared | 1883 | 1880 |
| Peak year | 2012 (6,047) | 2014 (5,720) |
| In 2025 | 1,080 | 3,477 |
| Trend | Declining | Steady |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Blake | Parker |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 9,021 | 22,420 |
| 2010s | 41,721 | 49,234 |
| 2000s | 50,109 | 35,729 |
| 1990s | 45,873 | 16,234 |
| 1980s | 25,398 | 2,800 |
| 1970s | 5,443 | 632 |
| 1960s | 4,721 | 524 |
| 1950s | 2,594 | 568 |
| 1940s | 583 | 578 |
| 1930s | 320 | 559 |
| 1920s | 414 | 728 |
| 1910s | 260 | 546 |
| 1900s | 45 | 143 |
| 1890s | 37 | 134 |
| 1880s | 19 | 112 |
From two Old English words that fell together in Middle English: 'blaec' meaning 'black, dark' and 'blac' meaning 'pale, fair'. This produces a true opposite-meaning dispute, and for any given bearer it is usually impossible to tell which sense was meant.
An English occupational surname, “keeper of the park.”
Parker is more popular than Blake today: about 3,477 US babies were given the name Parker in 2025, compared with 1,080 named Blake.
Blake means black OR pale — genuinely opposite meanings (english origin), while Parker means Park keeper (English origin).
In US records, Blake first appears in 1883 and Parker in 1880, so Parker has the longer recorded history.