# Fernando (first name)

Source: https://namelineage.com/first-name/fernando/  
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 | Spanish |
| Meaning | “journey”, “peace”, “daring”, “to be daring” |
| Pronunciation | /fɝˈnændoʊ/, 3 syllables |
| Nicknames | Nando |
| Variant spellings | none recorded |
| US babies named this | 103,729 since 1880 |
| Boys / girls in the US | 103,139 / 590 (1% girls) |
| Babies in England and Wales | 342, 1996 to 2025 |

## Etymology

From Spanish Fernando, a contraction of Ferdinando, equivalent to English Ferdinand. From Proto-Germanic *fardiz (“journey”) or *friþuz (“peace”) + *nanþaz (“daring”) (from the root of *ninþaną (“to be daring”)).

## What it means

Fernando is grouped under brave and peace.

## 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, girls

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 12 | 7,881 |
| 2000 | 9 | 10,164 |
| 2001 | 11 | 8,961 |
| 2002 | 15 | 7,179 |
| 2003 | 9 | 10,725 |
| 2004 | 18 | 6,581 |
| 2005 | 12 | 9,073 |
| 2006 | 7 | 14,060 |
| 2007 | 10 | 11,098 |
| 2008 | 5 | 18,427 |
| 2009 | 9 | 11,789 |
| 2010 | 6 | 15,604 |
| 2011 | 5 | 17,666 |
| 2012 | 9 | 11,588 |
| 2017 | 5 | 16,680 |

### United States, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 1,706 | 209 |
| 2012 | 1,482 | 243 |
| 2013 | 1,429 | 254 |
| 2014 | 1,404 | 264 |
| 2015 | 1,348 | 272 |
| 2016 | 1,245 | 289 |
| 2017 | 1,142 | 306 |
| 2018 | 1,093 | 311 |
| 2019 | 1,065 | 316 |
| 2020 | 938 | 342 |
| 2021 | 906 | 358 |
| 2022 | 976 | 342 |
| 2023 | 970 | 344 |
| 2024 | 952 | 352 |
| 2025 | 819 | 387 |

### England and Wales, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 18 | 1,342 |
| 2012 | 11 | 1,962 |
| 2013 | 13 | 1,706 |
| 2014 | 15 | 1,560 |
| 2015 | 13 | 1,786 |
| 2016 | 10 | 2,175 |
| 2017 | 15 | 1,627 |
| 2018 | 12 | 1,875 |
| 2019 | 8 | 2,488 |
| 2020 | 12 | 1,825 |
| 2021 | 16 | 1,516 |
| 2022 | 7 | 2,755 |
| 2023 | 14 | 1,701 |
| 2024 | 7 | 2,921 |
| 2025 | 10 | 2,269 |

## People named Fernando

- Fernando Botero, Colombian painter and sculptor (1932–2023)
- Fernando Lugo, 47.° President of Paraguay
- Fernando Gago, Argentine association football player and manager
- Fernando Redondo, Argentine association football player
- Fernando González, Chilean tennis player
- Julian Fernando Casablancas Christiansen, American singer
- Fernando Meirelles, Brazilian film director (born 1955)
- Fernando Reges, Brazilian footballer
- Fernando Amorebieta, footballer
- Fernando Solanas, Argentine film director, screenwriter and politician (1936–2020)
- Fernando Haddad, Brazilian politician, 51st mayor of São Paulo (2013–2017) and former Brazilian Finance Min
- Fernando Filoni, Catholic cardinal

## 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.