Hugh

Spellings & scripts●

Locally spelled Hugo in BR Brazil, ES Spain, NL Netherlands and 13 more, Hugues in FR France and Hughes in TH Thailand.

Spellings marked ● are how people bearing the name write it in our records; ○ marks a model's transliteration. Click a spelling to open its page.

Meaning & origin●

Attested across 12 languages in the etymology graph.

Languages●

Language is read off each record's context, not declared by the bearer; a share is of all records for this spelling.

Other names spelled this way◐

Hugh is also recorded as 3 other names, grouped separately because the records behind them do not connect to the one described above.

• Spanish given name48K records spelled Hugh60 spellings in the group

  Most recorded in Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, Peru

  Languages: Spanish, Portuguese, French

  Also written Hugo, Hugó, Hügö, Ugone, Hügo

• Russian given name1.4K records spelled Hugh6 spellings in the group

  Most recorded in United States, United Kingdom, Russia, Ireland

  Languages: Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian

  Also written Хью, Hughe

• Korean given name1.3K records spelled Hugh6 spellings in the group

  Most recorded in United States, South Korea, United Kingdom, Peru

  Also written Hugo, 후고, 휴고, Hugô, Hyugo

61 further groups record this spelling and are not listed here.

Grouping is the name graph's, not a register's: two spellings join a group when the evidence links them, so a group is a claim about the records rather than about the people.

Other recorded senses●

Hugh is also recorded in 5 other lexicons, as a different name or as an ordinary word. These are senses of the spelling, not of the name above.

• In English, from OFr Hue, from Germanic Hugo ‘heart, mind’; first attested Hugo 1066 DB (Hu, Suffolk)

  as a name·A Dictionary of English Surnames

• In French, English form of Hugues, from Germanic hug, 'mind, spirit'.

  as a name·Dictionnaire généalogique des prénoms

• In English, Germanic; used in Ireland and Scotland to translate Aodh, and also Hoibeard (Hubert).

  as a name·Irish first names

• In English, used instead of Hywel; page notes it later became Hughes/Pugh

  as a name·Welsh Surnames

• From an Old French name, Hugues, Hugo, of Germanic (Frankish) origin, derived from hug ‘heart’, ‘mind’, ‘spirit’. It was originally a short form of various compound names containing this element. This was borne by the aristocracy of medieval France, adopted by the Normans, and introduced by them to Britain.

  as a name·A concise dictionary of first names

Ordered by how much of this spelling's record each language holds, so a sense from a language the name is barely used in sits last rather than first.

Over time●

US SSA — National Baby Names (1880–present) — 146 years between 1880–2025. One register's own figures, never a sum across registers: two registers counting the same people would double them.

Notable people with this name●

• Hugh Falconerb. 1808GBScottish scientist (1808–1865)
• Hugh Hefnerb. 1926USAmerican businessman and magazine publisher (1926–2017)
• Willie Nelsonb. 1933USnot in their usual nameAmerican country musician (born 1933)
• Hugh Fraserb. 1945GBEnglish actor and theatre director
• Ritchie Blackmoreb. 1945GBnot in their usual nameBritish guitarist
• Hugh David Politzerb. 1949USAmerican physicist
• Hugh Laurieb. 1959GBEnglish actor, comedian, director, musician and writer
• Hugh Grantb. 1960GBBritish actor
• Hugh Bonnevilleb. 1963GBBritish actor (born 1963)
• Marilyn Mansonb. 1969USnot in their usual nameAmerican musician (born 1969)

The ten people covered by the most Wikipedia language editions — a proxy for cross-cultural notability, which favours historical and Western figures over equally prominent contemporary ones — shown by birth year. Source: Wikidata (CC0).

Evidence●

Register rows as of the 2026-09-12 data build · 725 rows in the corpus for this spelling.

Frequently asked questions

How common is the name Hugh?

We estimate roughly 529 thousand people bear Hugh (counting its spellings and scripts) across 13 countries in our records.

In which country does Hugh have the most bearers?

We estimate about 155 thousand people bear Hugh in France, more than in any other country in our records, where it is most often spelled hugues.

Where is Hugh most common?

Measured as a share of residents rather than as a count, Hugh is densest in Sweden — about 1 in 280 people — even though France holds more of our records for it.

How common is Hugh compared with other names?

In New Zealand, Hugh is the 171st most common given name of 22,472 given names recorded there.

Is Hugh a male or female name?

Hugh is a male name in our records. Opposite-gender entries fall within the cross-gender noise we measure in the source data, so we don't report them as usage.

What does the name Hugh mean?

Recorded meaning: from Old French Hughe or Hue, from Germanic shortened forms beginning with hug 'heart, spirit'.