boy's name
Glen
GLEN
- Origin Scottish
- Gender Boy
- Syllables 1
- Letters 4
- Popularity Uncommon
- Births on record 131,435
Scotland
#327
2024 births
Glen means a narrow valley, and it is one of very few Gaelic words that English borrowed wholesale rather than adapting to its own sounds. Scotland ranks it 327th today, far above every other market we track.
- Glen is a name of Scottish origin.
- Peaked in 1957, when 2,947 babies were given the name.
- It has been falling over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 44,803 babies in the United States is given this name.
- 1 syllable, with the stress on syllable 1.
Glen over time
Births per decade in the United States, 1880s to 2020s. The striped bar is the 2020s, still in progress — it covers 2020 to 2025, not a full ten years.
Show the numbers
| Decade | Births |
|---|---|
| 1880s | 457 |
| 1890s | 997 |
| 1900s | 1,392 |
| 1910s | 8,700 |
| 1920s | 15,239 |
| 1930s | 14,709 |
| 1940s | 16,723 |
| 1950s | 25,603 |
| 1960s | 22,003 |
| 1970s | 9,884 |
| 1980s | 5,359 |
| 1990s | 3,113 |
| 2000s | 1,525 |
| 2010s | 945 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 405 |
What Glen means
Glen means a narrow valley, especially a steep-sided one. The Gaelic gleann is the ordinary word, and English took it unchanged as both a common noun and a name.
Where Glen comes from
Glen is the Gaelic gleann, a narrow valley — one of a small set of Scottish and Irish landscape words English absorbed intact, alongside loch, ben, cairn, bog and strath. It became a surname from any of the many places named for one, and then a given name in twentieth-century America. The double-N Glenn is the more common American spelling. Glenlivet, Glenfiddich and Glencoe all carry the word in its original sense, which is why the name reads as unmistakably Scottish even to people who do not know what it means.
Glen in use
Glen peaked in the United States in 1957, when 2,947 babies were registered, and is falling in our data. It now ranks 327th in Scotland on 12 births — far above every other market — then 809th in Ireland, 2033rd in the United States on 74, 4223rd in England and Wales and 6552nd in France, across 131,435 lifetime births in six of the seven markets we track.
How popular is Glen?
In 2025, Glen was given to 74 babies in the United States. It is used consistently but remains uncommon.
Where Glen is used
US figures omit any name given to fewer than five babies in a year, so the rarest names are absent from the source rather than absent from use. Data & sources.
Names that peaked alongside Glen
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Glen also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Glen over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
Glen 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 Glen
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Glen — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Glen
What does the name Glen mean?
A narrow valley — the Gaelic gleann, taken into English unchanged.
Is it Glen or Glenn?
Both. The double-N is the more common American spelling.
Which other Gaelic words did English borrow whole?
Loch, ben, cairn, bog and strath, among a small set.
Where is Glen most used?
Scotland at 327th, far above every other market we track.
How popular is the name Glen?
In 2025, Glen was given to 74 babies in the United States. It is used consistently but remains uncommon.
Is Glen a girl's or a boy's name?
Glen is given almost entirely to boys in birth records.
How many syllables are in Glen?
Glen has 1 syllable.
When was Glen most popular?
Glen peaked in 1957, when 2,947 babies were given the name. It has been falling over the past decade.
Is Glen a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Glen currently ranks #327 in the United States. It has been falling over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.