Arbutus

A girl's name of Latin origin with 1,075 recorded U.S. births.

Girl's nameRare nameNot ranked recently

Meaning & Origin

A taxonomic genus within the family Ericaceae – madrones.

Arbutus is a girl's baby name of Latin origin, from the Latin botanical name Arbutus for the strawberry tree or madrone — a flowering evergreen shrub native to the Mediterranean and Pacific Coast, known for its bright red berries and peeling bark. Plant names were occasionally used as feminine given names in the late 19th century.

Arbutus belongs to the tradition of botanical given names — Ivy, Lily, Hazel, and their less common relatives — that gave daughters names tied to the natural world. The strawberry tree's year-round beauty and its ability to bear fruit and flowers simultaneously made Arbutus a name that seemed to embody abundance and resilience.

EtymologyShow more

Phonetically, Arbutus belongs to a cluster of names characterized by their classical, dignified ending — a hallmark of Latin and Greek masculine names. At three syllables, it has a three-beat flow that carries a sense of formality and completeness.

Within the Latin naming tradition, names with similar sound structures often share underlying etymological patterns. Exploring Latin names on this site may surface connections that illuminate Arbutus’s linguistic neighborhood.

At a Glance

1,075

Total births

Since 1906

1927

Peak

50 births

1906

First recorded

56 years of data

Compare Arbutus with another name

Popularity Over Time

Arbutus has 49+ years of history in the U.S., first appearing in 1906.

First appeared: 1906Peak: 1927 (50 births)

Popularity by Decade

Decade-by-decade popularity data for Arbutus
Decade	Births	Avg Rank	Trend
1960s	5	#6617	▼
1950s	31	#4992	▼
1940s	141	#2587	▼
1930s	267	#1504	▼
1920s	385	#1285	▲
1910s	228	#1453	▲
1900s	18	#1887	—

The Story of Arbutus

A Greatest Generation name

Peaking in 1927, Arbutus is a name steeped in history. Girls named Arbutus are most likely born between 1917 and 1937.

How rare is Arbutus?

With 1,075 total births on record, Arbutus remains a rare and distinctive pick.

The journey through the decades

First appeared in the records in 1906, peaked in the 1920s with 385 births that decade, and has since become a rare, vintage choice.

Arbutus by the numbers

Would fill 22 school buses
Meeting one Arbutus per day would take 2.9 years

Year-by-Year Data

View complete yearly data(49 years, 1906–1961)

Year-by-year popularity data for the name Arbutus
Year	Births	Rank	Change
1961	5	#6617	0
1955	5	#5866	-3 (-37.5%)
1954	8	#4293	+1 (14.3%)
1953	7	#4610	+1 (16.7%)
1951	6	#4861	+1 (20.0%)
1950	5	#5330	-6 (-54.5%)
1949	11	#3186	+1 (10.0%)
1948	10	#3361	-8 (-44.4%)
1947	18	#2355	+8 (80.0%)
1946	10	#3231	-2 (-16.7%)
1945	12	#2607	+1 (9.1%)
1944	11	#2770	-3 (-21.4%)
1943	14	#2451	-7 (-33.3%)
1942	21	#1864	+6 (40.0%)
1941	15	#2192	-4 (-21.1%)
1940	19	#1848	-3 (-13.6%)
1939	22	#1642	0
1938	22	#1653	+1 (4.8%)
1937	21	#1679	+5 (31.3%)
1936	16	#1953	-6 (-27.3%)

Source: U.S. Social Security Administration. Showing years with 5+ recorded births.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Arbutus a boy's or girl's name?

Arbutus is primarily a girl's name.

When was Arbutus most popular?

Arbutus reached its peak popularity in 1927 with 50 births that year. It is not currently in the top rankings.

How popular is the name Arbutus?

Arbutus is not currently in the top rankings but has been given to 1,075 babies in the U.S. since 1906. Its peak was in 1927.

Explore More

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Data source: U.S. Social Security Administration, 1906–1961