Rowan
/ˈroʊən/
Two roads to one name: an Irish “red” name and a berry-bearing tree
Irish and English · Ó Ruadháin, and the rowan tree
Two roads lead to Rowan: an Irish name for the red-haired, and the tree with the red berries. It passed 1,000 boys a year only in 2011; in 2025 there were 5,212.
Rowan at a glance
What Rowan means
Two roads to one name: an Irish “red” name and a berry-bearing tree — Ó Ruadháin, and the rowan tree
Rowan began as a traditionally masculine Irish name. It comes from the surname Ó Ruadháin, which goes back to ruadh, the Irish word for red-haired or rusty. Spellings such as Rowan also turn up for Ruadhán of Lorrha, a sixth-century Irish abbot, and in recent decades the name has become common for girls too.
English adds a second road: the rowan tree. Its name is often thought to come from a North Germanic source, perhaps Old Norse reynir, from a word for reddening that points to the berries. For girls the name often points to the tree, while for boys the Irish route is the older one. The two meet by chance on the same colour.
The name has more than one home. Alongside the Irish and tree routes, Rowan is also an Arabic girls’ name, written روان, that refers to a river in Paradise. Related forms include Roan, Rohan and Ruadhán, and the Irish mathematician William Rowan Hamilton, who lived from 1805 to 1865, carried it as a middle name long before it became fashionable.
In the Social Security files Rowan first appears in 1916, but it stayed under 100 boys a year until 1997. It passed 1,000 in 2011. It is at its highest yet: #59 in 2025 with 5,212 boys.
Source and context
The name history comes from Wikipedia, the tree and its folklore from Wikipedia, and every number from US Social Security data. We rewrite everything in our own words.
- Paragraph 1 Wikipedia: Rowan (name), Wikipedia: Ruadhán of Lorrha
- Paragraph 2 Wikipedia: Rowan (name), Wikipedia: Rowan (name)
- Paragraph 3 Wikipedia: Rowan (name)
- Paragraph 4 US Social Security Administration
- Note Wikipedia: Rowan (name)
The numbers behind Rowan
A look at the rankings over time and across places.
Two popularity paths for Rowan
How Rowan ranks among girls and boys’ names each year, 2015 to 2025. A lower number means more popular.
Among girls, Rowan’s rank climbed from #331 in 2015 to a best of #212 in 2018, then eased to #249 in 2025. It moved up 17 places in 2025.
Among boys, Rowan’s rank climbed from #219 in 2015 to #59 in 2025, and 2025 is its best year in this ten-year view.
How Rowan took off
- 1997First 100 boys
109 boys - 2004First top 500
#477 among boys · 529 boys - 2011Passed 1,000
1,047 boys · rank #309 - 2022First top 100
#96 among boys · 3,763 boys - 2025Most babies
5,212 boys · rank #59
States where Rowan ranks highest
Ranked by how popular Rowan is among boys’ names in each state in 2025 (in-state rank, not births per head). Wyoming ranks Rowan highest (#5 among boys), then Colorado (#22) and New Hampshire (#23). North Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Iowa and Maine complete the top eight, and five of the eight are Mountain West or Plains states.
- 1Wyoming#5
- 2Colorado#22
- 3New Hampshire#23
- 4North Dakota#23
- 5Utah#25
- 6Vermont#25
- 7Iowa#26
- 8Maine#26
Rowan since 1916
Babies named Rowan in the US each year, 1880 to 2025.
Rare until 2011,
then climbing to #59.
First recorded in 1916. It passed 1,000 boys in 2011, reached 1,816 in 2015 and stood at 5,212 in 2025.
Source: US Social Security Administration, national baby name data, 1880–2025. Calculation: NameMochi.
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The story around Rowan
Notable people and namesakes
Early and historical bearers include the abbot Ruadhán of Lorrha (died 584). More recent bearers include the English actor Rowan Atkinson (born 1955) and the former Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams (born 1950).
Sound-alike & sibling pairs
Names like Rowan
Computed from the same Social Security data as the Name Finder: names rising in the same way, plus the unisex nature names we have written up in full.
Compare names
Five names compared here, ranked among boys: Rowan (#59), River (#111), Rory (#199), Sage (#456), Wren (#1,090). All of them have gained ground since 2015.
| Name | Style | Latest rank | Change since 2015 | Stage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rowan | Irish · Nature · Two syllables | #59 | ↑ 160 places | Rising fast |
| River | Unisex nature name | #111 | ↑ 133 places | Rising, off its peak |
| Rory | Irish unisex name | #199 | ↑ 180 places | Rising fast |
| Sage | Unisex nature name | #456 | ↑ 191 places | Rising, off its peak |
| Wren | Unisex nature name | #1,090 | ↑ 1,040 places | Rising, off its peak |
Change is the move in rank since 2015, so a name can climb in rank while fewer babies are given it.
Stage compares the number of babies named in 2025 with 2015 (rising or cooling at 25% or more, fast at 50% or more).
What draws people to Rowan
- Two syllables with a soft, open sound.Our view
- A double source: an Irish name for the red-haired and a tree with red berries.Our view
- About 5,200 boys were given the name in 2025.From the data
- Shared across genders: 81% of Rowans are boys and 19% girls.From the data
- It sits comfortably on a boy or a girl.Our view
Things to consider
- For girls it is much rarer: 1,240 girls against 5,212 boys in 2025, so Rowan is far more often met as a boy’s name.Our view
- Its rise is recent: 71% of all babies ever recorded as Rowan in the US were born since 2015.From the data
- Spelling: Rowen (772 babies), Rowyn (480 babies) and Roan (180 babies) were also given in 2025.From the data
Common questions about Rowan
Is Rowan a boy’s name or a girl’s name?
Rowan is used for both girls and boys, though mostly boys. In 2025, 81% of babies named Rowan were boys (5,212) and 19% were girls (1,240). It ranks #59 for boys and #249 for girls.
What does Rowan mean?
Rowan is a traditionally masculine Irish name from the surname Ó Ruadháin, built on ruadh, the Irish word for red-haired or rusty. It also names the rowan tree, a word often thought to come from Old Norse and perhaps tied to the red berries.
How common is the name Rowan?
Fairly common. In 2025, 6,452 American babies were named Rowan, which ranks #59 among boys.
Is Rowan still rising?
Rowan is at its highest yet, with 5,212 boys in 2025. Over ten years it is still up 130%.
Who are some people named Rowan?
Examples include the actor Rowan Atkinson and the former Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams. Ruadhán of Lorrha, a sixth-century Irish abbot, carries a related form of the name.
Rowan is both an Irish family name and the name of a tree. See more names on the rise →
How these numbers are built
Sources → Calculations → Limitations
Sources
- The US Social Security Administration’s national and state baby name files, built from Social Security card applications for births in the United States.SSA baby name data
- Data year
- Births through 2025. New data arrives each May, and we recalculate this page then.
- Dates
- Published October 2026. Last updated October 2026.
- Word and history sources
- Name history, the tree and its folklore, and the people who share the name come from reference works.Wikipedia: Rowan (name)Wikipedia: RowanWikipedia: Ruadhán of LorrhaWikipedia: Rowan AtkinsonWikipedia: Rowan Williams
Calculations
- Ranks
- A rank is the name’s position among girls or among boys in the SSA file for that year (most babies = #1). Girls and boys are ranked separately.
- Counts
- Babies given exactly this spelling. Spelling variants are counted separately.
- Growth, peaks, milestones, shares and comparisons are calculated by NameMochi from those files.How NameMochi calculates
- Similar names
- Groups are computed from the same files: names rising in the same way. Names are on the same gender side as this one, and spelling twins count once. Editorial groups are checked against the linked sources.
- Stat cards
- The five cards are the most informative facts available for this name, picked by a score and shown in a fixed order.
Limitations
- US births only. The files record the sex shown on the application, which says nothing about how a child later identifies. Names given to fewer than five babies in a year are left out.
Source: US Social Security Administration. Calculation: NameMochi.