boy's name
Rodney
ROD-nee
- Origin English
- Gender Boy
- Syllables 2
- Letters 6
- Popularity Uncommon
- Births on record 250,092
Ireland
#309
1995 births
Rodney is a boy's name from an English place name, and its rise as a given name follows a single admiral — George Rodney, who broke the French line at the Saintes in 1782. It peaked in 1965.
- Rodney is a name of English origin.
- Peaked in 1965, when 11,132 babies were given the name.
- It has been falling over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 16,829 babies in the United States is given this name.
- 2 syllables, with the stress on syllable 1.
Rodney 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 | 112 |
| 1890s | 162 |
| 1900s | 194 |
| 1910s | 1,780 |
| 1920s | 4,555 |
| 1930s | 9,729 |
| 1940s | 24,930 |
| 1950s | 54,964 |
| 1960s | 72,557 |
| 1970s | 37,745 |
| 1980s | 18,043 |
| 1990s | 12,149 |
| 2000s | 6,475 |
| 2010s | 3,624 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 1,306 |
What Rodney means
Rodney means Hroda's island, or the island clearing. The Old English joins a personal name to a word for an island or dry ground in marsh, so it describes a place rather than a person.
Where Rodney comes from
Rodney is an English place name, generally read as the island of a man called Hroda, from an Old English personal name joined to eg, an island or a patch of dry ground in wetland. Rodney Stoke in Somerset carries it. Its life as a given name is traceable to George Brydges Rodney, the admiral whose victory at the Battle of the Saintes in 1782 saved Jamaica and made him a national figure; the name appears in numbers from that point, and Rodney Bay in St Lucia and several Rodney Streets are named for him.
Rodney in use
Rodney peaked in the United States in 1965, when 11,132 babies were registered, and is falling in our data. It now ranks 1091st in the United States on 197 births, 2301st in England and Wales and 5286th in France, across 250,092 lifetime births in four of the seven markets we track. Almost all of that volume falls within forty years of the peak, which is the signature of a name driven by fashion rather than tradition.
How popular is Rodney?
In 2025, Rodney was given to 197 babies in the United States. It is used consistently but remains uncommon.
Where Rodney 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 Rodney
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Rodney also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Rodney over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
1 nickname for Rodney
Each one is a name in its own right — the figure underneath is how it is doing today, so you can see which short forms are rising and which have faded.
Rodney 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.
- French
- Rodrigue
Sibling names for Rodney
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Rodney — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Rodney
What does the name Rodney mean?
Hroda's island — an English place name joining a personal name to a word for dry ground in wetland.
Who was Admiral Rodney?
George Brydges Rodney, whose victory at the Saintes in 1782 saved Jamaica and made the name a given name.
Is Rod short for Rodney?
Yes, and also for Roderick, which is a different name entirely.
How popular is Rodney?
1091st in the United States, down from a 1965 peak of 11,132 births.
Is Rodney a girl's or a boy's name?
Rodney is given almost entirely to boys in birth records.
How many syllables are in Rodney?
Rodney has 2 syllables.
What are the nicknames for Rodney?
Rodney is usually shortened to Rod.
Is Rodney a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Rodney currently ranks #1,091 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.