Given name & surname
Fergus
“the first and supreme choice”
Fergus is used as a given name and a surname. One interpretation is “the first and supreme choice.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
One interpretation is “the first and supreme choice.”
Where it comes from
Fergus comes from Irish, and ultimately from Proto-Celtic.
Adapted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0)
How it developed
Fergus developed from an English adaptation of Gaelic Fearghas. The earlier name combines fear (“man”) and gus (“vigour”).
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1916. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Fergus through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 568
- 568 boys · 0 girls
- Most popular year
- 2024
- 24 babies
- 2025
- 19
- #5,092 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +23%
- Rising
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 19 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 5,092 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 23.5% higher in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 647 as a first name in 2020; 1,821 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.
Fergus’s family of names
Fergus has an affectionate form in Fergie. In Cebuano usage, Fergus developed from the Scottish Gaelic form Fearghas. Fergus has a related form in Ferguson.
Inner ring: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 12
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Across languages 2
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
People named Fergus
- Fergus Mórlegendary king500–501
- Fergus SuterScottish footballer (1857-1916)
- Fergus AndersonBritish racing driver (1909-1956)
- Fergus Kavanaghfield hockey playerborn 1985
- Fergus HumeBritish writer (1859–1932)
- Fergus MillarBritish classical historian (1935–2019)
- Fergus EwingScottish politician (born 1957)
- Fergus Bowes-LyonBritish Army officer (1889-1915); elder brother of Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother; uncle of Elizabeth II
- Fergus of GallowayLord of Galloway1050–1161
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Fergus, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
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>99% boys
Faolan
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Egan
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Calhoun
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Rafferty
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Redmond
“a wise protector”
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Mckinnon
McKinnon is a surname from Scottish Gaelic. It is used in English and French.
81% boys · 19% girls
Finlay
“a fair-haired hero”
85% boys · 15% girls