| Lincoln | Ralph | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Lake colony | counsel wolf |
| Origin | English | english |
| Gender | Boy | Boy |
| Pronunciation | LINK-un | RALF |
| Syllables | 2 | 1 |
| First appeared | 1880 | 0 |
| Peak year | 2017 (8,202) | 1921 (8,860) |
| In 2025 | 4,703 | 0 |
| Trend | Rising | Vintage |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Lincoln | Ralph |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 33,535 | 1,113 |
| 2010s | 52,017 | 1,978 |
| 2000s | 8,804 | 2,779 |
| 1990s | 1,693 | 4,474 |
| 1980s | 1,158 | 7,998 |
| 1970s | 1,318 | 14,755 |
| 1960s | 1,260 | 34,190 |
| 1950s | 818 | 60,440 |
| 1940s | 845 | 64,983 |
| 1930s | 852 | 63,802 |
| 1920s | 1,302 | 84,466 |
| 1910s | 905 | 52,522 |
| 1900s | 176 | 9,298 |
| 1890s | 141 | 6,951 |
| 1880s | 94 | 4,269 |
An English place name, from Roman Lindum Colonia, “colony by the pool.” Borne by a US president.
Contracted from the Germanic/Old Norse name Radulf (Radulfr, Old English Raedwulf), combining 'rad' ('counsel, advice') and 'wulf/ulfr' ('wolf'), hence 'counsel wolf'.
Lincoln is more popular than Ralph today: about 4,703 US babies were given the name Lincoln in 2025, compared with 0 named Ralph.
Lincoln means Lake colony (English origin), while Ralph means counsel wolf (english origin).
In US records, Lincoln first appears in 1880 and Ralph in 0, so Ralph has the longer recorded history.