Every Boy Name

Boy's name

Ryan

Say it RY-un 2 syllables

Irish · “descendant of Rian”

Common across three Canadian provinces, Ireland, Northern Ireland, and 3 more places. Rare in France, England and Wales, Italy, and 16 more places.

1 in 250 boys born in Ireland in 2025. Number 57 there.

Ryan in every place

Rank, count and share in all 40 places: loved in 0, common in 8, rare in 19.
Ryan in every place we hold figures for
Place Rankyear Boysshare 5 years earlier
British Isles
England and Wales135 (down)20253741 in 7271012020
Scotland107 (down)2025471 in 418592020
Northern Ireland99 (down)2025241 in 345482020
Ireland57 (down)2025951 in 250302020
North America
Ontario (province)39 (down)2024233about 1 in 257262019
Quebec (province)84 (down)202585about 1 in 342522020
British Columbia (province)33 (down)202364about 1 in 203322018
Nova Scotia (province)Not in the published top 212025Not listed2020
Oceania
New South Wales (state)81 (down)2025102422020
Victoria (state)65 (down)2025107362020
Queensland (state)Not in the published top 1012025592020
South Australia (state)Not in the published top 1002025522020
New Zealand55 (down)202563482020
Western Europe
France364 (down)20251351 in 2,2422422020
Netherlands109 (down)2025153about 1 in 435622020
Central Europe
Austria344 (down)2025161 in 2,3792472020
Switzerland115 (down)2025631 in 571902020
Berlin (city)143 (up)202325about 1 in 6202172018
Munich (city)Rare: below the complete list2025Not listed2020
Cologne (city)325 (up)20233about 1 in 2,1263452018
Bonn (city)397 (down)20251about 1 in 3,1702422020
Leipzig (city)389 (down)20251about 1 in 2,8762172020
Rostock (city)Rare: below the complete list20251352020
Nordic countries
Norway347 (down)202591 in 2,5872832020
Sweden302 (down)202526about 1 in 1,6592772020
DenmarkNot in the published top 502025Not listed2020
FinlandNot in the published top 502025No list2020
IcelandNot in the published top 102025No list2020
Southern Europe
SpainNot in the published top 1002024Not listed2019
Catalonia (region)323 (up)2025111 in 1,8823642020
Italy107 (down)20242371 in 7991052019
Central and Eastern Europe
Poland376 (down)202581 in 15,8003402020
HungaryNot in the published top 1002025Not listed2020
SloveniaRare: below the complete list2025Not listed2020
EstoniaNot in the published top 272025Not listed2020
Moscow (city)Not in the published top 612025Not listed2020
CroatiaNot in the published top 502025No list2020
Middle East
TurkeyNot in the published top 302025Not listed2020
Israel (published as ראיין)635 (down)202411about 1 in 7,7365422019
Latin America
ArgentinaNot in the published top 202024Not listed2019

Germany publishes no national list; the German rows are city registers. Israel publishes names in Hebrew script; the original is shown beside the name. About: the publisher leaves out its smallest names, so the share is approximate. ▲ and ▼ compare the rank with five years earlier. Not listed five years earlier: not in that year’s list. No list: the place published no list that year. How these figures are computed.

About the name

Ryan comes from an Irish surname meaning "descendant of Rian", and it became a given name in its own right in the second half of the last century. It is also sometimes chosen for the Arabic name Rayyan, because the two sound so alike.

2 more paragraphs

RY-un has two syllables and a relaxed, easy sound. Rian is the Irish spelling that returns to the older name, and Rayan and Bryan are close to it in sound.

Ryan was at its most fashionable a generation ago, and in Canada it peaked in 1981. It is still used in British Columbia, Ontario and New Zealand, and it also appears in Italy, the Netherlands and Switzerland. It is now falling in most places, which makes it a familiar name that feels settled rather than new.

Meaning, origin and how to say it

Say it
RY-un · 2 syllables · Stress on beat 1 of 2.
Meaning
“descendant of Rian”
Origin
Irish and Arabic
Related names
Rian, Bryan, Rayan, Brian, Aryan, Ryane
Where Ryan comes from (Wiktionary)

From the Irish surname O Riain / O Riaghain, literally "descendant of Rian"; popular as a given name from the 1970s to the 1990s. Also used for the Arabic name Rayyan due to the similar sound.

Shortened from the Wiktionary entry for Ryan. Text available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Ryan over time

Rising in 2 of the 19 regions we can compare over five years, falling in 13. Peak in Ontario and British Columbia: 1981.

Rank in England and Wales, 1996 to 2025

Ryan in England and Wales: #7 in 1996, and #135 in 2025.

#1#10#50#100#300200020052010201520202025Top 101996: #7, 6,496 boys1997: #9, 5,631 boys1998: #12, 4,992 boys1999: #11, 5,080 boys2000: #15, 4,271 boys2001: #18, 3,758 boys2002: #20, 3,344 boys2003: #22, 3,147 boys2004: #22, 3,009 boys2005: #25, 2,933 boys2006: #25, 2,761 boys2007: #25, 2,817 boys2008: #21, 3,048 boys2009: #30, 2,398 boys2010: #30, 2,489 boys2011: #36, 2,151 boys2012: #42, 1,675 boys2013: #51, 1,234 boys2014: #69, 989 boys2015: #69, 955 boys2016: #81, 855 boys2017: #83, 817 boys2018: #91, 696 boys2019: #95, 649 boys2020: #101, 590 boys2021: #106, 569 boys2022: #116, 475 boys2023: #116, 447 boys2024: #132, 416 boys2025: #135, 374 boyspeak #7, 1996#135in 2025
Show the numbers
YearRankBoys
199676,496
199795,631
1998124,992
1999115,080
2000154,271
2001183,758
2002203,344
2003223,147
2004223,009
2005252,933
2006252,761
2007252,817
2008213,048
2009302,398
2010302,489
2011362,151
2012421,675
2013511,234
201469989
201569955
201681855
201783817
201891696
201995649
2020101590
2021106569
2022116475
2023116447
2024132416
2025135374

Source: Office for National Statistics (OGL v3)

The long view: in Ontario and British Columbia

Half of the boys named Ryan in Ontario and British Columbia since 1925 were born in or after 1990. Peak: 1981, about 3,072 per 100,000 boys. Babies per 100,000 boys, five-year periods.

1925-1929: 0 per 100,000 boys1930-1934: 0 per 100,000 boys1935-1939: 0 per 100,000 boys1940-1944: 0 per 100,000 boys19401945-1949: 0 per 100,000 boys1950-1954: 5.4 per 100,000 boys1955-1959: 16.3 per 100,000 boys1960-1964: 23.1 per 100,000 boys19601965-1969: 97.4 per 100,000 boys1970-1974: 645.7 per 100,000 boys1975-1979: 2,095.9 per 100,000 boys1980-1984: 2,821.4 per 100,000 boys19801985-1989: 2,262.4 per 100,000 boys1990-1994: 2,093.8 per 100,000 boys1995-1999: 1,803.4 per 100,000 boys2000-2004: 1,576.8 per 100,000 boys20002005-2009: 1,250.5 per 100,000 boys2010-2014: 860.1 per 100,000 boys2015-2019: 638 per 100,000 boys2020-2024: 431.6 per 100,000 boys20201980-1984: about 1 in 35 boys
Show the numbers
YearsPer 100,000 boys
1925–19290
1930–19340
1935–19390
1940–19440
1945–19490
1950–19545.4
1955–195916.3
1960–196423.1
1965–196997.4
1970–1974645.7
1975–19792,095.9
1980–19842,821.4
1985–19892,262.4
1990–19942,093.8
1995–19991,803.4
2000–20041,576.8
2005–20091,250.5
2010–2014860.1
2015–2019638
2020–2024431.6

Source: Ontario Office of the Registrar General (Ontario Data Catalogue) (OGL-Ontario); BC Vital Statistics Agency (BC Data Catalogue) (OGL-BC). Dark bar: the period holding the median birth year.

Brothers and middle names for Ryan

Brother names

Names that rose and fell with Ryan, from the same generation, with no clashing sounds.

  1. 1 in 224, Northern Ireland

  2. 1 in 913, England and Wales

  3. 1 in 290, England and Wales

  4. 1 in 277, England and Wales

  5. 1 in 97, England and Wales

  6. 1 in 354, England and Wales

  7. 1 in 130, Scotland

  8. 1 in 128, Ireland

  9. 1 in 387, England and Wales

  10. 1 in 949, Ireland

All 40 brother names for Ryan

Middle names

Scored for rhythm against Ryan's 2 syllables and for long, steady use.

  1. 1 in 86, England and Wales

  2. 1 in 50, Ireland

  3. 1 in 61, Northern Ireland

  4. 1 in 103, England and Wales

  5. 1 in 130, Scotland

  6. 1 in 62, Poland

  7. 1 in 88, England and Wales

  8. 1 in 137, Scotland

Full-name check

Ryan Oliver

Syllables 2-3Initials R.O.No sound clashes between the parts.

All 40 middle names for Ryan

Sisters for Ryan: Sarah, Layla, Leah, and 5 more
  1. SarahRose and fell with Ryan · As common as Ryan
  2. LaylaRose and fell with Ryan · As common as Ryan
  3. LeahRose and fell with Ryan · Same generation as Ryan
  4. JessicaRose and fell with Ryan · Same generation as Ryan
  5. AmberRose and fell with Ryan · Same generation as Ryan
  6. AvaRose and fell with Ryan · Irish, like Ryan
  7. KaylaRose and fell with Ryan · Same generation as Ryan
  8. AlanaRose and fell with Ryan · Same generation as Ryan

Girls' names from the same engine, over the girls' lists of the same publishers.

Moved with Ryan

The boy names whose popularity rose and fell most like Ryan's across every region and decade we hold.

  1. Rare in France, Italy, Poland, and 13 more places.

  2. Rare across France, the UK, Italy, and 18 more places.

  3. Rare in France, England and Wales, Italy, and 16 more places.

  4. Rare in Poland, Israel, Sweden, and 11 more places.

  5. Rare in all 24 places we hold figures for.

  6. Rare in France, England and Wales, Italy, and 15 more places.

  7. Rare in France, Poland, Israel, and 16 more places.

  8. Common across France, the UK, three Canadian provinces, and 8 more places.

Famous people named Ryan

Ryan Reynolds, Ryan Gosling, and 6 more

From Wikidata, ranked by how many Wikipedia language editions have an article on them. People: Wikidata (CC0). Links go to Wikipedia in this page's language when an article exists, else English.

Questions about Ryan

How popular is Ryan in British Columbia?

Ryan ranked #33 in British Columbia in 2023, given to 64 boys, about 1 in 203.

Is Ryan rising in popularity?

Not overall: it is falling in more places than it is rising. Rising in 2 of the 19 regions we can compare over five years, falling in 13. Rising in: Berlin and Catalonia.

What does Ryan mean?

Ryan means “descendant of Rian”, according to Wiktionary.

How many syllables does Ryan have?

Ryan has 2 syllables: RY-un.

Every rank and count on this page comes from an official birth register. How these figures are computed.

Meanings, origins and people: Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0), Wikidata (CC0).

The 42 birth registers behind these figures

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Kept names collect here.

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