Bates is a distinctive boys' name in United States, ranking #10893 in 2013 with 6 recorded births. This places Bates in the bottom 23% of ranked US boys' names for the year. Its actual usage is classified as Rare. The name reached its all-time peak in 2014 with 17 births ranking #5272. In 2013, approximately 1 in every 315,209 boys born was named Bates. FALLING Recent data shows the name is currently falling.