Thornton is a distinctive boys' name in United States, ranking #6676 in 2003 with 11 recorded births. This places Thornton in the bottom 48% of ranked US boys' names for the year. Its actual usage is classified as Rare. The name reached its all-time peak in 1996 with 16 births ranking #4171. Since 1996, the popularity has decreased by 31.3%. In 2003, approximately 1 in every 179,570 boys born was named Thornton. RISING Recent data shows the name is currently rising.