The first name Hamlet
A boy’s name meaning “fool”, “to annoy”.
Pronounced /ˈhæm.lət/ 2 syllables Male Also a surname
Meaning and origin
Hamlet means “fool”, “to annoy”.
From Latin Amlethus, as written by 13th-century Danish historian Saxo Grammaticus, and borrowed into English by way of François de Belleforest's French Hamlet, originally rendered as Hamblet in English. Ultimately from Old Danish Amlethæ, corresponding to Old Norse Amlóði (“fool”), claimed to be suggestive of the way that Hamlet acts in the play, from ama (“to annoy”).
From Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Popularity in the United States
Babies named Hamlet at birth, 1880–2025
In 2025, 8 boys born in the United States were named Hamlet, the 9,204th most popular boys’ name that year. It was used most in 2019, when 11 were.
US Social Security Administration, from applications for a Social Security card. A name is only published for a year when at least five babies were given it, so quieter years show as zero.
Hamlet in other languages
Equivalent forms of the name, from Wiktionary
Spelled Hamlet in Czech, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, French, German, Hungarian, Icelandic, Polish, Portuguese, Spanish and Turkish too.
Nicknames and spellings
Other spellings and forms
- Hamblet
- Hamblett
- Hamlett
Famous people named Hamlet
2 on Wikidata, most written-about first
- Hamlet IsakhanliAzerbaijani mathematician, born 1948
- Hamlet BarrientosFootballer, born 1978
Questions
- What does the name Hamlet mean?
- Hamlet means “fool”, “to annoy”.
- Is Hamlet a boy's or a girl's name?
- Mostly a boy's name: 100% of the 253 US babies named Hamlet since 1880 were boys.
- When was Hamlet most popular?
- 2019 in the United States, when 11 babies were named Hamlet, its highest rank at 7,333rd.
- How do you pronounce Hamlet?
- Hamlet is /ˈhæm.lət/, 2 syllables.
- What are other spellings of Hamlet?
- Hamblet, Hamblett and Hamlett.
- Is Hamlet also a surname?
- Yes. Hamlet is used as a surname as well as a first name; its surname page has the origin and how many people carry it.