Meaning and history
Russ is an English short form of Russell. Russell originated as an Anglo-Norman surname from Old French rous, meaning “red” or “red-haired,” with a diminutive ending. It later became a masculine given name and produced the independent nickname Russ. Notable bearers include American actor and dancer Russ Tamblyn and American politician Russ Feingold. The name is unrelated to Russia or the term Rus despite the spelling. Russell remains the full traditional form.
20062006: 5 births, rank #12,055
2007: 12 births, rank #6,622
2008: no US SSA record for this spelling
2009: 5 births, rank #12,491
2010: 7 births, rank #9,693
20112011: 12 births, rank #6,578
2012: 12 births, rank #6,626
2013: 6 births, rank #10,728
2014: 5 births, rank #12,108
2015: 8 births, rank #8,744
20162016: 8 births, rank #8,816
2017: 7 births, rank #9,696
2018: 13 births, rank #6,345
2019: 11 births, rank #7,173
2020: 17 births, rank #5,235
20212021: 18 births, rank #5,110
2022: 21 births, rank #4,701
2023: 21 births, rank #4,742
2024: 14 births, rank #6,199
20252025: 20 births, rank #4,857
Russ moved from #795 to #949 for boys between 1971 and 1972. Its highest annual birth count came in 1959, with 350 births.