Given name & surname
Gates
“one who is close-minded”
Gates is a variant of Gate. One American interpretation is “one who is close-minded.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
Gates is a variant of Gate. One American interpretation is “one who is close-minded.”
Explained through its name family
Where it comes from
Gates is a variant of Gate. An origin associated with Gate is American.
Explained through its name family
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1904. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Gates through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 499
- 455 boys · 44 girls
- Most popular year
- 2024
- 37 babies
- 2025
- 21
- #4,759 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +40%
- Rising
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 21 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 4,759 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 40.0% higher in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 509 as a first name in 2020; 51,298 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.
Gates’s family of names
Gates has a related form in Gate. In English usage, Gates as a surname has a conventional equivalent in the Russian form Гейтс. In English usage, Gates as a surname has a conventional equivalent in the Chinese form 蓋茨.
Inner ring: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 1
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 Gates
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Gates, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Ares
“Ares' dome” · “the containment of competition”
96% boys · 4% girls
Gael
“woman from Ireland” · “one who is or speaks Gaelic”
>99% boys
Augustus
“one who is venerable; majestic”
>99% boys
Ayaan
Ayaan is a masculine given name.
98% boys · 2% girls
Myles
“one who is merciful” · “a soldier”
99% boys · 1% girls
Hayes
“from the hedged valley” · “from the hedged place”
95% boys · 5% girls
Banks
Banks is a surname.
91% boys · 9% girls
Rhys
“ardour” · “having great enthusiasm for life”
95% boys · 5% girls