Given name & surname
Newman
“a newcomer”
Newman is used as a given name and a surname. One English interpretation is “a newcomer.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
One English interpretation is “a newcomer.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is English.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1882. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Newman through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 1,896
- 1,896 boys · 0 girls
- Most popular year
- 1921
- 67 babies
- 2025
- 0
- Outside the ranked list
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- —
- Too few births to compare
By the numbers
The most recent published U.S. birth count for boys is 5 in 2024. Later missing counts do not mean the name went unused. Its largest published annual count for boys was 67 in 1921. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 802 as a first name in 2020; 97,169 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.
Newman’s family of names
In English usage, Newman as a surname shares a linguistic root with the German form Neumann. Newman has a related form in Neuman. Newman has a related form in Neumann.
Inner ring: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Newman has relatives in 5 languages. Lines run from its English roots to each of them.
6 related names in 5 languages. Point at a dot, or tab to the map and use the arrow keys.
Nicknames & forms 3
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Across languages 5
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
People named Newman
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Newman, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Newton
“from the new town”
>99% boys
Freeman
“one who is free”
>99% boys
Norman
“a man from the north”
>99% boys
Elden
“an old friend”
>99% boys
Erwin
“a friend of the wild boar”
>99% boys
Norris
“a man from the north”
>99% boys
Elton
“a spontaneous woman” · “from the old town”
99% boys · 1% girls
Elroy
“a red-haired young man” · “a king”
>99% boys