Fun Facts About the Name Osborne
- More than 1 thousand babies named Osborne: U.S. records list 1,753 babies given the name Osborne from 1880 through 2025.
What Does the Name Osborne Mean?
Osborne is of Old Norse origin and means "god-bear" or "bear of a god." It comes from the Old Norse personal name Ásbjǫrn, formed from áss, "god" (a pagan deity; the word is related to Old English ōs), and bjǫrn, "bear." The Norman French form Osbern is the immediate source of the English name. The spelling Osborne is a later variant of the surnames Osborn and Osbern, and it is mainly as a surname that the name was preserved.
A second, similar Old English name, Osbeorn, existed before the Norman Conquest, built from ōs, "god," and beorn, "man" or "warrior." Because the two names looked and sounded alike, medieval writers often spelled them the same way, so it is not always possible to tell which one stands behind a particular record. The usual explanation of Osborne points to the Norse Ásbjǫrn with the "bear" element, but descent from the Old English Osbeorn with "warrior" cannot be ruled out in every case.
Osborne Name History & Origins
Old Norse speakers settled in northern and eastern England from the ninth century, and the personal name Ásbjǫrn appears in English records in forms such as Osbern. Scandinavian settlers had also carried the name to Normandy, where it became common among the Normans, and they brought it back to England after 1066. Osbern was widely used in eleventh- and twelfth-century England and Normandy. Osbern the Steward served the Norman dukes and was guardian to the young William the Conqueror, and his son William FitzOsbern became Earl of Hereford. Osbern FitzOsbern was bishop of Exeter from 1072 until his death in 1103, and Osbern of Canterbury, a monk and writer at Christ Church, Canterbury, composed saints' lives in the late eleventh century.
During the later Middle Ages the name largely died out as a personal name in England, but it survived and multiplied as a hereditary surname in spellings such as Osborn, Osborne, and Osbourne. From the eighteenth century onward it began to be used again as a first name, generally by families adopting an inherited surname as a given name. It remains far more common as a surname than as a first name in the English-speaking world.
How Popular is the Name Osborne?
Osborne recorded its highest annual U.S. birth count in 1915. Its best rank was #699 in 1910.
U.S. name popularity from 1880-2025, based on SSA data. Rank shows how the name compares with other names - lower numbers mean greater popularity. Births shows how many babies received the name each year.
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #4,663 | 22 | 0.0013% |
| 2024 | #6,367 | 14 | 0.0008% |
| 2023 | #6,427 | 14 | 0.0008% |
| 2022 | #5,373 | 18 | 0.0010% |
| 2021 | #5,717 | 16 | 0.0009% |
| 2020 | #4,505 | 22 | 0.0013% |
| 2019 | #4,755 | 21 | 0.0012% |
| 2018 | #9,434 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 2017 | #6,571 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 2016 | #8,633 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 2015 | #7,893 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 2014 | #11,753 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 2013 | #8,589 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 2012 | #11,876 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 2011 | #9,380 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 2010 | #9,440 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 2009 | #13,942 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2007 | #13,868 | 5 | 0.0002% |
| 2006 | #13,482 | 5 | 0.0002% |
| 2002 | #9,133 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2001 | #10,194 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 2000 | #10,000 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1999 | #11,136 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1996 | #10,110 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1990 | #9,119 | 5 | 0.0002% |
| 1988 | #4,379 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 1986 | #6,506 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1985 | #7,305 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1984 | #5,418 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1982 | #7,079 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1981 | #3,555 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 1980 | #6,999 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1978 | #4,450 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1976 | #4,786 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1975 | #6,060 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1974 | #4,500 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1973 | #5,659 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1972 | #5,540 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1971 | #4,262 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1970 | #3,021 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 1969 | #4,846 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1967 | #4,391 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1966 | #2,922 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1965 | #3,178 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1964 | #2,172 | 15 | 0.0008% |
| 1963 | #2,021 | 17 | 0.0008% |
| 1962 | #3,919 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1961 | #3,045 | 9 | 0.0004% |
| 1960 | #2,019 | 17 | 0.0008% |
| 1959 | #1,847 | 20 | 0.0009% |
| 1958 | #1,877 | 19 | 0.0009% |
| 1957 | #1,781 | 21 | 0.0010% |
| 1956 | #2,341 | 13 | 0.0006% |
| 1955 | #2,026 | 16 | 0.0008% |
| 1954 | #2,284 | 13 | 0.0006% |
| 1953 | #1,449 | 28 | 0.0014% |
| 1952 | #2,228 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 1951 | #1,887 | 17 | 0.0009% |
| 1950 | #1,933 | 16 | 0.0009% |
| 1949 | #1,601 | 22 | 0.0012% |
| 1948 | #1,926 | 16 | 0.0009% |
| 1947 | #1,414 | 28 | 0.0015% |
| 1946 | #1,741 | 18 | 0.0011% |
| 1945 | #1,614 | 18 | 0.0013% |
| 1944 | #1,861 | 15 | 0.0011% |
| 1943 | #1,812 | 17 | 0.0012% |
| 1942 | #1,577 | 21 | 0.0015% |
| 1941 | #1,572 | 20 | 0.0016% |
| 1940 | #1,781 | 16 | 0.0014% |
| 1939 | #1,775 | 16 | 0.0014% |
| 1938 | #2,066 | 13 | 0.0012% |
| 1937 | #1,476 | 22 | 0.0021% |
| 1936 | #1,220 | 30 | 0.0029% |
| 1935 | #1,416 | 24 | 0.0023% |
| 1934 | #2,094 | 13 | 0.0013% |
| 1933 | #1,757 | 17 | 0.0017% |
| 1932 | #1,374 | 26 | 0.0025% |
| 1931 | #1,580 | 21 | 0.0020% |
| 1930 | #1,591 | 22 | 0.0020% |
| 1929 | #1,774 | 19 | 0.0018% |
| 1928 | #1,477 | 26 | 0.0023% |
| 1927 | #1,398 | 29 | 0.0026% |
| 1926 | #1,273 | 33 | 0.0030% |
| 1925 | #1,163 | 38 | 0.0034% |
| 1924 | #1,374 | 30 | 0.0026% |
| 1923 | #1,376 | 29 | 0.0026% |
| 1922 | #1,327 | 31 | 0.0028% |
| 1921 | #1,220 | 36 | 0.0033% |
| 1920 | #1,203 | 37 | 0.0035% |
| 1919 | #1,205 | 35 | 0.0036% |
| 1918 | #1,148 | 37 | 0.0037% |
| 1917 | #1,031 | 41 | 0.0044% |
| 1916 | #1,054 | 38 | 0.0043% |
| 1915 | #913 | 47 | 0.0055% |
| 1914 | #1,044 | 30 | 0.0046% |
| 1913 | #1,019 | 25 | 0.0049% |
| 1912 | #847 | 28 | 0.0065% |
| 1911 | #916 | 14 | 0.0062% |
| 1910 | #699 | 19 | 0.0098% |
| 1909 | #1,408 | 6 | 0.0037% |
| 1908 | #1,539 | 5 | 0.0032% |
| 1907 | #1,303 | 6 | 0.0041% |
| 1906 | #1,090 | 7 | 0.0053% |
| 1905 | #901 | 9 | 0.0068% |
| 1903 | #1,099 | 6 | 0.0050% |
| 1902 | #1,266 | 5 | 0.0041% |
| 1901 | #1,169 | 5 | 0.0047% |
| 1900 | #1,276 | 6 | 0.0040% |
| 1899 | #1,022 | 6 | 0.0056% |
| 1896 | #1,073 | 6 | 0.0050% |
| 1894 | #931 | 7 | 0.0060% |
| 1893 | #1,148 | 5 | 0.0045% |
| 1888 | #895 | 7 | 0.0058% |
| 1886 | #936 | 6 | 0.0054% |
| 1885 | #912 | 6 | 0.0056% |
| 1884 | #1,081 | 5 | 0.0044% |
| 1880 | #789 | 7 | 0.0063% |
Name popularity over more than a century, based on Social Security Administration data. Gaps in the chart indicate years when the name does not appear in the published records.
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How the Name Osborne Shapes Your Personality and Life?
You are patient, persevering and strong willed. You are a good student, absorbing knowledge easily and retaining it well. You are either a saint or a sinner. You tend to hold things inside and suffer in silence. You are frank, methodical and believe in law, system and order.
You are very intuitive. You have a reservoir of inspired wisdom combined with inherited analytical ability, which could reward you through expressions of spiritual leadership, business analysis, marketing, artistic visions, and scientific research. Operating on spiritual side of your individuality can bring you to the great heights, and drop you off if you neglect your spiritual identity. You are always looking for an opportunity to investigate the unknown, to use and show your mental abilities, to find the purpose and meaning of life. You want to grow wise and to understand people and things. You need privacy to replenish your energy. You have a unique way of thinking, intuitive, reflective, absorbing.
✦ Osborne's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Osborne's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.