Given name & surname
Gus
“a respected man; one who is exalted”
Gus is used as a given name and a surname. One German interpretation is “a respected man; one who is exalted.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
One German interpretation is “a respected man; one who is exalted.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is German.
How it developed
In English usage, Gus is a diminutive of Augustus. In English usage, Gus is a diminutive of Konstantinos.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1880. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin. In English use, Gus is a diminutive of Gustav. The history of Gustav gives this family its wider story. Gustav has historical associations with Scandinavian royalty.
Combines direct and name-family evidence
Gus through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 20,124
- 20,119 boys · 5 girls
- Most popular year
- 1921
- 327 babies
- 2025
- 145
- #1,331 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −11%
- Easing
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 145 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 1,331 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 10.5% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 327 in 1921. In 2025, Minnesota had the largest reported state-level birth count for boys with this name (11). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 10,519 as a first name in 2020; 236 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.
Gus’s family of names
In English usage, Gus is a diminutive of Augustine. In English usage, Gus is a shortened form of Augustus. In English usage, Gus is a diminutive of Augustus.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 9
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
- Augustusfull form · English
- Augustinefull form · English
- Angusfull form
- Gustavfull form · English
- Konstantinosfull form · English
- Gustavefull form · English
- Kostasfull form · English
- Gussvariant
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Spellings & scripts 1
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 4
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
People named Gus
- Gus Van SantAmerican film director, producer, photographer and musician (born 1952)
- Gus GrissomAmerican astronaut (1926–1967)
- Gus PoyetUruguayan association football player and managerborn 1967
- Gus KenworthyAmerican and British freestyle skier and actorborn 1991
- Gus WilliamsAmerican basketball player (born 1953)
- Gus HallAmerican politician (1910–2000)
- Gus BilirakisU.S. Representative from Floridaborn 1963
- Gus KahnGerman-American lyricist (1886-1941)
- Gus JohnsonAmerican basketball player (1938-1987)
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Appears in
Similar names
If you love Gus, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
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