| Peter | Elias | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Rock, stone | The Lord is my God |
| Origin | Greek | Greek |
| Gender | Boy | Boy |
| Pronunciation | PEE-ter | ee-LY-us |
| Syllables | 2 | 3 |
| First appeared | 1880 | 1880 |
| Peak year | 1957 (11,603) | 2025 (8,837) |
| In 2025 | 1,954 | 8,837 |
| Trend | Steady | Near its peak |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Peter | Elias |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 10,923 | 42,605 |
| 2010s | 18,725 | 40,925 |
| 2000s | 26,136 | 19,617 |
| 1990s | 42,394 | 8,856 |
| 1980s | 56,713 | 4,479 |
| 1970s | 62,320 | 2,962 |
| 1960s | 92,418 | 1,774 |
| 1950s | 102,747 | 1,547 |
| 1940s | 69,330 | 1,227 |
| 1930s | 35,822 | 1,355 |
| 1920s | 34,066 | 1,766 |
| 1910s | 24,935 | 1,144 |
| 1900s | 4,375 | 254 |
| 1890s | 4,028 | 302 |
| 1880s | 4,656 | 450 |
From the Greek petros, “rock.” Jesus renames the apostle Simon as Peter, the rock of the church.
Elias is the Greek and Latin form of Elijah, from the Hebrew for “my God is Yahweh.” It appears in the New Testament and is used across Europe.
Elias is more popular than Peter today: about 8,837 US babies were given the name Elias in 2025, compared with 1,954 named Peter.
Peter means Rock, stone (Greek origin), while Elias means The Lord is my God (Greek origin).
In US records, Peter first appears in 1880 and Elias in 1880, so Peter has the longer recorded history.