Holding steady, #8,910 for boys today.
Popularity of Harrington since 1912
Babies named Harrington per year in U.S. Social Security records. Raw births topped out in 2018, but relative to how few babies were recorded back then, Harrington's real moment was 1912.
Data table (by decade)
| Decade | Boys |
|---|---|
| 1910s | 33 |
| 1920s | 46 |
| 1930s | 14 |
| 1940s | 28 |
| 1950s | 16 |
| 1960s | 6 |
| 1970s | 17 |
| 1980s | 11 |
| 1990s | 22 |
| 2000s | 30 |
| 2010s | 74 |
| 2020s | 41 |
Meaning & origin
Harrington is an uncommon English-derived surname name that has seen sporadic use as a first name since the early 20th century. It first appeared in U.S. birth records in 1912 and peaked that same year, after which its popularity declined and remained consistently low. The name's trajectory has been stable for decades, never experiencing a revival. In 2025, it ranked near the bottom of the top 10,000 names, with only about 1 in 213,510 newborns receiving it. While not historically associated with any state more than others, its aristocratic sound appeals to parents seeking distinguished, place-name-inspired choices. Harrington offers a formal, surname-style alternative to more common choices like Harrison, with innate nicknames such as Harry or Hank.
Harrington is an English surname transferred to given name use, derived from various places in England named Harrington. The place name likely comes from the Old English personal name 'Here' combined with '-ing' (meaning 'people of') and 'tūn' (settlement), thus 'settlement of Here's people'. As a first name, it has seen occasional use since the late 19th century, favored for its dignified, aristocratic sound.
Nicknames & variants
Nicknames: Harry, Hank, Hari
Sibling names for Harrington
Names that share Harrington's style, for a brother or sister.
Sisters: Ellington, Prescott, Dempsey, Kensington, Merritt
Brothers: Montgomery, Wellington, Fitzgerald, Sullivan, Bennett, Barrington
