Home › Baby Names Directory › Peyton
Peyton
Pronounced PAY-ton /ˈpeɪ.tən/High
Meaning: From an English place name and surname meaning 'Pæga's town' — a settlement named after an Old English personal nameHigh
Popularity in the U.S. · SSA data
U.S. births per year (Social Security Administration, 1880–present). Pink marker = peak year.
SSA data updated May 2026. How we source & verify this data.
History & Origin
Peyton is an English surname derived from an Old English place name. The first element is the personal name Pæga; the second is tūn (settlement, estate, town). Surnames from English place names are a vast category, and Peyton followed the path of similar names like Preston, Dalton, and Colton into first-name use.
As a first name, Peyton was predominantly masculine through the mid-20th century. The character Peyton Sawyer in One Tree Hill (2003–2009) greatly boosted its popularity for girls. Today it is used primarily as a girls' name in the U.S. while remaining in use for boys. It has been in the U.S. top 100 girls' names since the mid-2000s.
Variations
Nicknames
Famous Bearers
- ★Peyton Manning (b. 1976)American NFL quarterback, two-time Super Bowl champion.
If you like Peyton…
Frequently Asked
What does the name Peyton mean?
Peyton is an English surname from a place name meaning 'Pæga's town' — a settlement associated with an Old English personal name.
How do you pronounce Peyton?
Peyton is pronounced PAY-ton /ˈpeɪ.tən/ — two syllables with stress on the first.
Is Peyton a boy or girl name?
Peyton is used for both, but in the U.S. it is now more common as a girl's name.
How popular is Peyton?
Peyton has been in the U.S. top 100 girls' names since the mid-2000s and remains popular.