# Columbus (first name)

Source: https://namelineage.com/first-name/columbus/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. US counts from the Social Security Administration; England and Wales counts from the Office for National Statistics; meaning and etymology from Wiktionary. Data updated 2026-11-11.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Usually given to | boys |
| Origin | Latin |
| Meaning | “a dove” |
| Pronunciation | /kəˈlʌmbəs/, 3 syllables |
| Nicknames | Lum |
| Variant spellings | none recorded |
| US babies named this | 7,517 since 1880 |
| Boys / girls in the US | 7,517 / 0 (0% girls) |
| Babies in England and Wales | 3, 1996 to 2025 |

## Etymology

From Latin columbus (“a dove”). Doublet of Colombo. The common noun and verb are references to the Italian explorer.

## What it means

Columbus is grouped under bird.

## Popularity

The last 15 years of each series. A year is missing when too few babies were given the name for the agency to publish it: five in the US, three in England and Wales.

### United States, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | 7 | 8,622 |
| 2003 | 6 | 9,795 |
| 2004 | 13 | 5,874 |
| 2006 | 7 | 9,754 |
| 2007 | 8 | 9,063 |
| 2008 | 5 | 12,873 |
| 2009 | 5 | 12,846 |
| 2011 | 9 | 8,198 |
| 2012 | 6 | 11,059 |
| 2014 | 9 | 8,264 |
| 2016 | 7 | 9,863 |
| 2017 | 5 | 12,660 |
| 2018 | 6 | 11,042 |
| 2019 | 7 | 9,941 |
| 2023 | 5 | 12,580 |

### England and Wales, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 3 | 3,134 |

## In other languages

- Chinese: 哥倫布 /哥伦布
- Greek: Κολόμβος
- Polish: Kolumb
- Russian: Колу́мбус
- Italian: Colombo

## People named Columbus

- Columbus Short, American choreographer
- Columbus Delano, American politician (1809-1896)
- Christopher C. Kraft, American aerospace engineer (1924–2019)

## How to read these numbers

A count is babies registered with that name in that year, not people alive now, so a name common a century ago can have a large total and few recent births.