boy's name
Murray
MURR-ee
- Origin Scottish
- Gender Boy
- Syllables 2
- Letters 6
- Popularity Uncommon
- Births on record 26,973
Scotland
#90
2024 births
Murray is a boy's name of Scottish origin from Moray, the northern province, whose name means "sea settlement." It ranks 90th in Scotland and is reviving from a peak our records place in 1922.
- Murray is a name of Scottish origin.
- Peaked in 1922, when 635 babies were given the name.
- After peaking in the 1920s it fell out of use, and is now climbing again — a classic revival.
- Today about 1 in 57,162 babies in the United States is given this name.
- 2 syllables, with the stress on syllable 1.
Murray 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 | 203 |
| 1890s | 298 |
| 1900s | 527 |
| 1910s | 3,320 |
| 1920s | 5,617 |
| 1930s | 2,932 |
| 1940s | 2,589 |
| 1950s | 2,718 |
| 1960s | 1,666 |
| 1970s | 681 |
| 1980s | 423 |
| 1990s | 309 |
| 2000s | 230 |
| 2010s | 433 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 353 |
What Murray means
Murray means of Moray, and Moray means sea settlement — from Brittonic elements meaning sea and settlement or homestead. The name is territorial: it says which part of Scotland a family came from, not anything about a person.
Where Murray comes from
Murray is a Scottish surname from Moray, the province on the southern shore of the Moray Firth, and the place name is pre-Gaelic — generally reconstructed from Brittonic mori, sea, and treb, a settlement, giving sea settlement. Moray was a semi-independent province with its own mormaers; Macbeth was one of them before he took the Scottish throne in 1040. The de Moravia family took the territorial name in the twelfth century and it spread widely, becoming one of the most common Scottish surnames. Its use as a first name follows the general Scottish habit of moving clan surnames forward, the same pattern behind Campbell, Douglas and Fraser. Andy Murray has kept the name visible for a generation, though as a surname rather than as a model for naming children.
Murray in use
Murray ranks 90th in Scotland with 58 births in 2024 and is almost entirely Scottish — 2,044th in England and Wales, 2,610th in the United States, 923rd in Ireland. Our records mark it reviving from a peak in 1922 and carry it from 1880, so its current position is a vintage surname returning rather than a new arrival.
How popular is Murray?
In 2025, Murray was given to 58 babies in the United States. It is used consistently but remains uncommon.
Where Murray 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 Murray
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Murray also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Murray over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
Murray 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 Murray
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Murray — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Murray
What does the name Murray mean?
Murray means "of Moray," and Moray itself means sea settlement, from Brittonic elements.
Is Murray a first name or a surname?
It began as a Scottish territorial surname and moved forward into first-name use, like Campbell and Douglas.
Is Murray related to Moray?
Yes — Murray is the anglicized spelling of the province name.
How popular is Murray?
Ninetieth in Scotland, and rare everywhere else.
Is Murray a girl's or a boy's name?
Murray is given almost entirely to boys in birth records.
How many syllables are in Murray?
Murray has 2 syllables.
Is Murray a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Murray currently ranks #90 in the United States. After peaking in the 1920s it fell out of use, and is now climbing again — a classic revival. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.