Harper
About Harper
Harper got its start as a celebrity baby name when Paul Simon chose it for his now-grown son. Since then, other famous parents have followed suit: musician Tim Finn and actor Cecilia Peck both have sons called Harper.
Other high-profile Harpers, like author (Nelle) Harper Lee and starbabies Harper Burtka-Harris and Harper Beckham, are female, but it makes a handsome choice for either sex (and is in the US Top 1000 for both boys and girls).
Pronounced HAR-per.
As of October 2026, Harper ranked #1980 in US births in 2025 SSA, peaked at #606 in 2012.
Editor's take: The name Harper is a boy's name of English origin meaning "harp player".
Popularity & trends
Data table
| Year | US rank | Births | Per million |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | #730 | 328 | 170.8 |
| 2015 | #724 | 341 | 177.9 |
| 2016 | #791 | 299 | 157.6 |
| 2017 | #801 | 286 | 154.5 |
| 2018 | #973 | 214 | 117.8 |
| 2019 | #1,029 | 202 | 112.6 |
| 2020 | #1,246 | 149 | 86.3 |
| 2021 | #1,275 | 149 | 85.2 |
| 2022 | #1,347 | 139 | 79.6 |
| 2023 | #1,434 | 127 | 74.2 |
| 2024 | #1,791 | 91 | 52.8 |
| 2025 | #1,980 | 77 | 45.1 |
World rankings
Similar names
These 20 names were selected by our users looking for other names like Harper.
Harper on lists
Famous Harpers
- Harper Simon
American singer, son of Paul Simon
- Harper Carter
American entrepreneur
- Harper Williams
American basketball player
- Harper Goff
American artist, musician, and actor
- Harper LeBel
American football player
- Alexander Harper "Xander" Berkeley
American actor
- Harper Finn (b. 1998)
son of musician Tim Finn of band Crowded House
- Harper Daniel Peck (b. 1999)
son of actress Cecilia Peck; grandson of actor Gregory Peck
- Harper Edward Weyman (b. 2008)
son of American actress Laura Allen
- Harper Lowery (b. 2010)
son of musician Clint Lowery of Sevendust and Seether
- Harper Watters
Youtuber and demi,soloist with Houston Ballet
Harper in pop culture
- Harper
main character in "The Drowning Pool"
- Dr. Harper Avery
character on ABC's "Grey's Anatomy" and namesake of fictional Harper Avery Award; grandfather of Dr. Jackson Avery
- Harper Sutton
character in "Palace of Mirrors" by Margaret Peterson Haddix
- Charlie and Alan Harper
characters in "Two and a Half Men"
- Roy Harper aka Speedy
Red Arrow and Arsenal, character in DC Comics
- Seamus Harper
character on TV Show Andromeda