Basil vs Benjamin

Basil and Benjamincompared on official birth-registration statistics and Namewise's recorded data. This page states what each name's record shows — it never picks a winner or scores one name against the other.

Head to head

Ranks are only compared within one published list and one year. Two ranks from different years, from a boys' and a girls' list, or from different registrars are not comparable, so they are not placed side by side.

Republic of Ireland · Boys
In 2020, Basil was ranked #741 and Benjamin #50 among boys in Republic of Ireland.
England and Wales · Boys
In 2024, Basil was ranked #1282 and Benjamin #61 among boys in England and Wales.

Basil and Benjamin over time

Basil and Benjamin appear together in 2 published lists, across 41 years of shared records. Benjamin held the stronger position in more years in 2 of them, Basil in 0.

In none of those lists did their order change and stay changed.

Each reached its own highest recorded position first in 1 of the lists they share.

Counted list by list. Two names in the same published list are measured on the same scale in the same year, so those comparisons are real — but positions from different lists are not, so nothing here is combined into an overall standing.

List by list

England and Wales · Boys29 shared years, 1996–2024
Basil held the stronger position in 0 of those years, Benjamin in 29.
Highest recorded here: Basil #1023 in 2021, Benjamin #6 in 2002.
The order between them never changed and held in this list.
Most recent shared year, 2024: Basil #1282, Benjamin #61.
Republic of Ireland · Boys12 shared years, 1964–2020
Basil held the stronger position in 0 of those years, Benjamin in 11.
Highest recorded here: Basil #185 in 1966, Benjamin #50 in 2020.
The order between them never changed and held in this list.
Most recent shared year, 2020: Basil #741, Benjamin #50.

Two names moving past each other in a ranking is a fact about the ranking. Namewise does not claim one name displaced the other, that families chose between them, or that either influenced the other — none of that is in this data.

Where to go next

Comparisons that share a name, a rule or a published list with this one. Each is an existing comparison page with its own evidence — nothing here says these pairs are alike.

Other comparisons involving Benjamin

Pairs where Benjamin shares a published list with another name, each measured inside one registrar's own list.

Benjamin vs Graham
In 1964 they stood at #139 and #129 in Republic of Ireland · Boys, 10 places apart; by 2023 they were #71 and #770.
Benjamin · Graham · 54 shared years, 1964–2023 · Started together, ended far apart
See the 2023 Republic of Ireland ranking
Benjamin vs Ross
In 1997 they stood at #37 and #30 in Northern Ireland · Boys, 7 places apart; by 2023 they were #73 and #395.
Benjamin · Ross · 27 shared years, 1997–2023 · Started together, ended far apart
See the 2023 Northern Ireland ranking
Benjamin vs Justin
In 1964 they stood at #139 and #139 in Republic of Ireland · Boys, 0 places apart; by 2025 they were #83 and #402.
Benjamin · Justin · 62 shared years, 1964–2025 · Started together, ended far apart
See the 2025 Republic of Ireland ranking
Benjamin vs Einar
Over 61 shared years in Norway · Boys, Benjamin rose about as far as Einar fell — from #345 and #27 in 1950 to #48 and #57 in 2025.
Benjamin · Einar · 61 shared years, 1950–2025 · Mirrored each other
See the 2025 Norway ranking

Side by side

Side-by-side comparison of Basil, Benjamin
Field	Basil	Benjamin
Record type	Official statistical record (evidence-only)	Editorially researched profile
Gender usage	male	male
Meaning	Not yet recorded	Commonly interpreted as 'son of the right hand', with the underlying literal sense being 'son of the south' (since 'right' indicated the southerly direction in the biblical east-facing orientation convention).
Origin	Not yet recorded	Biblical Hebrew
Pronunciation	Not yet recorded	/ˈbɛndʒəmɪn/
Syllables	2	3
Common variants / nicknames	Not yet recorded	Not yet recorded
Recorded regional usage	GB-ENW, IE	AU-NSW, GB-ENW, GB-NIR, GB-SCT, IE, NO, NZ
Most recent popularity observation	England and Wales · Boys #1282 (2024)	New South Wales, Australia · Boys #46 (2025)
Pronunciation clarity (demonstration score)	Not yet recorded	90/100
Spelling simplicity (demonstration score)	94/100	76/100
International familiarity (demonstration score)	60/100	100/100
Data Confidence	medium	medium

What the data shows

Benjamin has a recorded origin (Biblical Hebrew); Basil does not have one recorded yet.
Basil has 2 syllables, compared with 3 for Benjamin.
A meaning is recorded for Benjamin; Basil doesn't have one written yet.
Both names have recorded usage in GB-ENW, IE.

How each name got here

Basil

Popularity journey

First recorded1964
First recorded at #232 among boys in Republic of Ireland in 1964 — the earliest year that source publishes this name, not necessarily the earliest it was used.
Republic of Ireland · Boys
Highest recorded1964–2020
Highest recorded position: #185 among boys in Republic of Ireland, in 1966 (recorded 1964–2020).
Republic of Ireland · Boys
Most recent2024
Most recently recorded at #1282 among boys in England and Wales, in 2024.
England and Wales · Boys

Benjamin

Popularity journey

First recorded1950
First recorded at #345 among boys in Norway in 1950 — the earliest year that source publishes this name, not necessarily the earliest it was used.
Norway · Boys
Highest recorded1970–2023
Highest recorded position: #3 among boys in New Zealand, in 2003 (recorded 1970–2023).
New Zealand · Boys
Most recent2025
Most recently recorded at #46 among boys in New South Wales, Australia, in 2025.
New South Wales, Australia · Boys