Meaning and history
Fergus means “man of vigour” and comes from the Old Irish elements fer, meaning “man,” and guss, meaning “vigour, strength, force.” It was the name of several early rulers of Ireland and Dál Riata, as well as many figures in Irish legend, including Fergus mac Róich, the hero who was tricked into surrendering the kingship of Ulster to Conchobar, stayed loyal until Conchobar betrayed Deirdre and Naoise, and then defected to Connacht in anger. The name was also borne by an 8th-century saint who was a missionary to Scotland, and it is the Old Irish form as well as the usual Anglicized form of Modern Irish Fearghas or Fearghus.
20062006: 6 births, rank #10,662
2007: 12 births, rank #6,622
2008: 12 births, rank #6,763
2009: 7 births, rank #9,864
2010: no US SSA record for this spelling
20112011: 12 births, rank #6,578
2012: 9 births, rank #8,158
2013: 20 births, rank #4,621
2014: 12 births, rank #6,632
2015: 21 births, rank #4,545
20162016: 20 births, rank #4,776
2017: 17 births, rank #5,297
2018: 16 births, rank #5,540
2019: 15 births, rank #5,813
2020: 13 births, rank #6,296
20212021: 22 births, rank #4,494
2022: 12 births, rank #6,828
2023: 23 births, rank #4,456
2024: 24 births, rank #4,321
20252025: 19 births, rank #5,045
In 2025, 19 babies were recorded with the name Fergus, ranking #5,045 among boys.