Given name & surname
Palmer
“a pilgrim bearing a palm branch”
Palmer is used as a given name and a surname. One English interpretation is “a pilgrim bearing a palm branch.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
One English interpretation is “a pilgrim bearing a palm branch.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is English.
How it developed
From Middle English palmer (“a pilgrim from the Holy Land”).
Adapted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0)
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.
From dated birth records
Palmer through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 18,653
- 9,264 boys · 9,389 girls
- Most popular year
- 2025
- 1,560 babies
- 2025
- 1,560
- #232 for girls · #995 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +108%
- Rising fast
Boys, girls and both
The balance of boys and girls given this name has shifted over time. Recent births are 19% boys.
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 1,330 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 232 among girls’ names. Average annual use for girls was 131.8% higher in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. It also appeared in 230 birth records for boys in 2025. In 2025, Texas had the largest reported state-level birth count for girls with this name (140). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 6,871 as a first name in 2020; 151,165 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.
Palmer’s family of names
Palmer has a related form in Palmira. Palmer has a related form in Pallmar. Palmer has a related form in Pallmer.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 10
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
- Palmiravariant
- Palmerevariant
- Palmirevariant
- Palmeervariant
- Palmeerovariant
- Palmirovariant
- Palmerstonvariant
- Pallmarvariant
Show 2 moreShow fewer
Spellings & scripts 1
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 1
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
People named Palmer
- Palmer LuckeyAmerican founder of Oculus VR and inventor of the Oculus Riftborn 1992
- Palmer CoxCanadian illustrator and author (1840–1924)
- Palmer HaydenAmerican artist (1890-1973)
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Appears in
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