Barney

Variation of Barnabas

"son of comfort"

Barney Origin and Meaning

The name Barney is a boy's name meaning "son of comfort".

The name Barney is hot among hip Londoners and it has been above the Top 500 in the UK since 2012. You can see why - it's got a friendly happy sound and a lovely meaning and is more easily worn than Barnabas. However, Barney is a more difficult sell in America, due to Barney the Dinosaur and Barney Gumble, the loveable lout from The Simpsons. In the positive column for Barney are jazz clarinetist Barney Bigard and guitarist Barney Kessel. For those who love the name but can't get past the dinosaur, may we suggest the related names Bernard or Barnaby?

Barney Rank in US Top 1000

# 944 in the US

Barney Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

# 1226 on Nameberry

Popularity of the name Barney

• 1226 Nameberry 2025
• 287 England 2023

20 Names Similar to Barney

These 20 names were selected by our users that were looking for other names like Barney.

• Guy
• Ernie
• Abe
• Earl
• Ted
• Gene
• Pete
• Ned
• Clifford
• Norman
• Walt
• Howie
• Elmer
• Georgie
• Lou
• Rutherford
• Herbert
• Milton
• Willie
• Homer

Famous People Named Barney

• Barnett "Barney" Frank U.S. Congressman from Massachusetts
• Barney Kessel American jazz guitarist
• Albany Leon "Barney" Bigard American jazz clarinetist
• Berna Eli "Barney" Oldfield American racing driver
• Barney Martin American actor
• Barney Ross (born Dov Ber David Rosofsky), American boxer
• Barnaby John "Barney" Harwood English TV personality
• Barnett Jerome "Barney" Danson Canadian cabinet minister
• Bernhard "Barney" Dreyfuss American baseball team owner
• Barney Sedran American basketball player
• Barney Barnato (born Barnet Isaacs) South African diamond mogul
• Barney Pelty American baseball player
• (William) Barney McCosky American baseball player
• Bernard Ernst "Barney" Berlinger American decathlete
• Barney Aaron English boxer
• John "Barney" Yazici aka ThatGuyBarney Turkish,American YouTuber

The name Barney in Pop Culture

• Barney Fife character from "The Andy Griffith Show"
• "Barney Miller " TV sitcom and its main character
• Charles Bernard "Barney" Barton Marvel comics character
• "Barney & Friends " children's TV show about a purple dinosaur
• Barnabas "Barney" Stinson character from "How I Met Your Mother"
• Barney Gumble character from "The Simpsons"
• Barney Rubble character on "The Flintstones"
• "Barney Google and Snuffy Smith " comic strip
• Barney Bear MGM animated character
• Barney Snow character in movie "The Bumblebee Flies Anyway"
• Barney Ross a main character in "The Expendables" movies
• Barneys New York luxury American department store
• Barney Butter brand of almond butter
• Barney (Rubble) Cockney rhyming slang for "trouble"