Breck is a short name from the Gaelic breac, "speckled" or "freckled", which survives in surnames like Breckenridge and in the Colorado ski town of Breckenridge; it also brings to mind Alan Breck Stewart, the swashbuckling Highlander of Stevenson's Kidnapped. One crisp syllable puts it beside Beck and Brock. Breck stood at number 3931 in 2000, peaked at number 1774 in 2016 and sits at number 3000 in 2025.