Fun Facts About the Name Pilot
- 168 babies named Pilot: U.S. records list 168 babies given the name Pilot from 1880 through 2025.
What Does the Name Pilot Mean?
Pilot is an English word name taken from the occupation word for the person who steers a ship; the same word later came to mean the person who operates an aircraft. The term entered English through Middle French pilote and Italian pilota (an older Italian form is recorded as pedota), which are usually traced to Byzantine Greek *πηδώτης (pēdōtēs), "steersman," formed from πηδόν (pēdon), "blade of an oar." That Greek form is a reconstruction rather than a directly recorded word, so the exact path is not settled; some reference works instead connect the term to Greek πηδάλιον (pēdalion), "rudder." The literal sense is a nautical steersman, and the broader senses - a guide, or an aircraft operator - are extensions of that same nautical meaning, not separate origins.
Pilot Name History & Origins
Pilot began as a nautical word, borrowed into English in the early sixteenth century from French and Italian, where it named the mariner who guided a vessel in and out of a harbor - the sense still alive in the phrase harbor pilot. From that practical seafaring meaning the word widened to mean any guide or person who leads the way, and in the early twentieth century it was applied to the operator of an aircraft, which became its most common everyday sense.
As a personal name, Pilot is rare in English-speaking countries. It belongs to the modern class of word and occupation names, in which an ordinary noun is adopted directly as a given name with no added suffix and no change of form, and the same word also appears as an English surname. Because the word's origin is documented in the Romance and Greek nautical vocabulary, Pilot is not a shortened form or variant of an older personal name, and it does not descend from a saint's name or a classical given name.
How Popular is the Name Pilot?
Pilot has historically been an exceptionally rare given name in the United States, remaining well outside the national mainstream. It saw its highest recorded annual births in 2009. Its best rank was #5,056 in 2009.
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 | #9,483 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 2023 | #10,518 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2022 | #13,828 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2021 | #13,585 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2019 | #7,070 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 2018 | #8,653 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 2017 | #9,473 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 2016 | #10,456 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2015 | #5,923 | 15 | 0.0008% |
| 2014 | #7,979 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 2013 | #10,447 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2012 | #7,418 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 2011 | #6,903 | 12 | 0.0006% |
| 2010 | #9,453 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 2009 | #5,056 | 19 | 0.0010% |
| 2008 | #7,085 | 12 | 0.0006% |
| 2007 | #11,996 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 2005 | #9,870 | 7 | 0.0004% |
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.
Explore More Lists with Name Pilot
Most Popular Boy Names That Start with P
Short Boy Names That Start with P
How the Name Pilot Shapes Your Personality and Life?
You have a power of expression, either in speaking or writing. You are in favor for studying and research. You are clever, clear-sighted and intellectual. You don't like to let others know your true feelings. You might be atheistic or agnostic. You are intuitive and might be interested in the arts, drama or science.
You desire to inspire and lead, to control other's affairs. You are giving, courageous and bold, action oriented,energetic and strong willed. You want to make a difference in the world, and this attitude often attracts you to cultural interests, politics, social issues, and the cultivation of your creative talents.
✦ Pilot's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Pilot's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.