Cruz

What Cruz means

Spanish, meaning “cross”

From cruz (“cross”), in the religious sense, and as a topographic surname.

Source: Wiktionary, “Cruz” (revision 94538540), CC BY-SA 4.0. Quoted from the etymology; we don’t write our own.

How popular is Cruz?

US: Steady: #324 in 2015, #331 now. England & Wales: Rising: up from #406 in 2015.

Biggest US share so far: 2013, when 1,250 boys got the name (#279 that year). First in the US records in 1880.

How common

• About 1 in 1,666 baby boys in the US in 2025
• About 1 in 1,054 baby boys in England and Wales in 2025
• About 1 in 677 baby boys in Scotland in 2025

“1 in N” divides by all listed births for that sex. The US list leaves out names given to fewer than 5 babies, and the UK lists leave out names given to 2 or fewer, so the real figure is a little rarer than shown.

Where in the US

Most popular in HI (4.11 per 1,000 boys), NM (2.0 per 1,000 boys), AZ (1.68 per 1,000 boys) in 2025.

SSA state data, 2025. Share of all listed boys born in each state.

US vs UK

Cruz is #331 in the US and #200 in England & Wales (2025).

Same sex as this page (boys). SSA (US), ONS (England and Wales), NRS (Scotland).

Boy or girl?

In 2025, 98.6% of US babies named Cruz were boys.

Counts below the publishing threshold (US 5, UK 3) are not included.

How to say it

IPA from Wiktionary.

Other spellings parents chose in 2025

• Kruz167 US · 22 E&W
• Cruze37 US · 34 E&W
• Kruze30 US · 9 E&W
• Cris14 US
• Cruiz0 US · 6 E&W
• Cruse6 US
• Cruize0 US · 4 E&W
• Kruiz0 US · 3 E&W

Names that sound the same and differ by a letter or two, with baby counts for the same sex. US and E&W counts.

If you like Cruz

Boys

• Kingston#204Editor’s note More popular in the US than England & Wales: #204 vs #2,014 in 2025
• Lucas#10Editor’s note Up from #16 in 2015 to #10 in 2025 in the US. About 1 in 170 US boys in the 2025 records
• Judah#178Editor’s note More popular in the US than England & Wales: #178 vs #404 in 2025
• Atticus#281“the Attic, the Athenian, a cognomen”^*
• Jude#155possibly “praised”^*
• Hudson#17Editor’s note Up from #65 in 2015 to #17 in 2025 in the US. About 1 in 200 US boys in the 2025 records

For a sister

• Lyla#80Editor’s note Up from #141 in 2015 to #80 in 2025 in the US. About 1 in 520 US girls in the 2025 records
• Adelaide#289“noble + nature, character”^*
• Olive#197Editor’s note More popular in England & Wales than the US: #47 vs #197 in 2025
• Violet#13From the word “violet”^*
• Lucy#24“light”^*
• Harper#16From a surname for “a player of the harp”^*

Picked from the US top 1,000 in 2025: names Wiktionary also files under where there are enough, topped up with common names whose US popularity since 1990 rose and fell most like Cruz’s. Place names are only included if they are in the top 300. Rank is US 2025.