Given name & surname
Trace
“one who is warlike”·“a woman warrior”·“one who is brave”
In English use, Trace is a short form of Tracy. One interpretation is “one who is warlike.” Trace is a variant of Tracey. Interpretations include “a woman warrior” and “one who is brave”. These belong to different or overlapping naming contexts.
Meaning & origin
What it means
In English use, Trace is a short form of Tracy. One interpretation is “one who is warlike.” Trace is a variant of Tracey. Interpretations include “a woman warrior” and “one who is brave”. These belong to different or overlapping naming contexts.
Explained through its name family
Where it comes from
Trace is a variant of Tracey. Tracey has been associated with Latin and English naming traditions.
Explained through its name family
How it developed
In English usage, Trace is a short form of Tracy. In English usage, Trace is a short form of Tracey.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1956. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin. In English use, Trace is a short form of Tracy. The history of Tracy gives this family its wider story. Tracy’s naming history includes the use of a family name as a given name.
Combines direct and name-family evidence
Trace through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 14,112
- 13,764 boys · 348 girls
- Most popular year
- 2008
- 534 babies
- 2025
- 340
- #758 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +24%
- Rising
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 340 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 758 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 24.0% higher in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 534 in 2008. In 2025, Texas had the largest reported state-level birth count for boys with this name (34). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 11,398 as a first name in 2020; 955 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.
Trace’s family of names
In English usage, Trace is a short form of Tracy. Trace has a related form in Tracey. Trace has a related form in Tracy.
Inner ring: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 2
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 Trace
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Appears in
Similar names
If you love Trace, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
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