boy's name
Arran
ARR-an
- Origin Scottish
- Gender Boy
- Letters 5
- Popularity Rare
- Births on record 5,479
Scotland
#51
2024 births
Arran is a boy's name taken from the Scottish island in the Firth of Clyde, whose own name is old enough that its meaning is no longer recoverable. It ranks 51st in Scotland.
- Arran is a name of Scottish origin.
- Peaked in Scotland in 2006, when 129 babies were given the name.
- Its usage has held steady over the past decade in Scotland.
- Today about 1 in 433 babies in Scotland is given this name.
- First appears in birth records in 1974.
Arran over time
Births per decade in Scotland, 1970s to 2020s. The striped bar is the 2020s, still in progress — it covers 2020 to 2024, not a full ten years.
Show the numbers
| Decade | Births |
|---|---|
| 1970s | 18 |
| 1980s | 74 |
| 1990s | 363 |
| 2000s | 866 |
| 2010s | 1,087 |
| 2020s (to 2024) | 471 |
What Arran means
Arran has no settled meaning. The island name predates Gaelic settlement and the usual suggestions — a Brittonic word for high place, or a form of the Gaelic for kidney, describing the island's shape — are guesses rather than derivations.
Where Arran comes from
Arran is the Isle of Arran, in the Firth of Clyde, and the island's name has never been convincingly explained. It appears in early sources as Ára and is generally taken to predate Gaelic settlement, which puts it beyond reliable reconstruction; proposals include a Brittonic root meaning high place and the Gaelic àirinn, but neither commands agreement. Two things are frequently confused with it. The Aran Islands off Galway are a separate place with a separate name, from ára, a kidney, describing their shape, and they are spelled with one letter r. Aran the Hebrew name, and Aaron, are unconnected to either. Arran as a personal name is recent and Scottish, part of the same wave of island names that brought Iona, Skye and Islay into use, and it benefits from being a place name that already looks like a first name.
Arran in use
Arran ranks 51st in Scotland with 88 births in 2024 and is essentially unused elsewhere — 1,237th in England and Wales, 12,354th in the United States. Our records mark it stable with a peak in 2008 and carry it from 1973, so it is a modern name with no earlier life. It is one of the more strictly Scottish entries in the top hundred.
How popular is Arran?
In 2024, Arran was given to 88 babies in Scotland, ranking #51 that year. It is a rare choice.
Where Arran is used
Figures for Scotland withhold any name given to fewer than three babies in a year, so a gap means the name fell below that floor rather than went unused. Data & sources.
Names that peaked alongside Arran
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Arran also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Arran over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
Arran in other languages
The same name as it is spelled elsewhere — not shortenings, and not different names that merely sound alike. Each one has its own record here.
Sibling names for Arran
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Arran — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Arran
What does the name Arran mean?
It has no settled meaning. The island name is old enough that its derivation cannot be recovered.
Is Arran the same as Aran?
No. Arran is the Scottish island; the Aran Islands are Irish and take their name from ára, a kidney.
Is Arran related to Aaron?
No. Aaron is Hebrew and unconnected.
How popular is Arran?
Fifty-first in Scotland, and rare everywhere else.
Is Arran a girl's or a boy's name?
Arran is given almost entirely to boys in birth records.
Is Arran a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Arran currently ranks #51 in Scotland. Its usage has held steady over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.