Given name & surname
Argus
“one who is vigilant and watchful”
Argus is used as a given name and a surname. One Greek interpretation is “one who is vigilant and watchful.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
One Greek interpretation is “one who is vigilant and watchful.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is Greek.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1912. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Argus through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 205
- 205 boys · 0 girls
- Most popular year
- 1921
- 13 babies
- 2025
- 6
- #10,795 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- —
- Too few births to compare
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 6 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 10,795 among boys’ names. The recent annual counts are too incomplete to establish a ten-year comparison. Its largest published annual count for boys was 13 in 1921. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 148 as a first name in 2020; 324 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Inner ring: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 1
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Across languages 1
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
Similar names
If you love Argus, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Erasmus
“one who is dearly loved”
>99% boys
Cletus
“one who has been summoned”
>99% boys
Erastus
“a loving man”
>99% boys
Eustace
“having an abundance of grapes”
>99% boys
Rastus
“a loving man”
>99% boys
Anatole
“born with the break of day”
>99% boys
Odell
“a sweet melody” · “one who is wealthy”
98% boys · 2% girls
Alpha
Alpha is used as a given name and a surname. One Greek interpretation is “the firstborn child; the first letter of the Greek alphabet.”
89% boys · 11% girls