boy's name
Struan
STROO-an
- Origin Scottish
- Gender Boy
- Letters 6
- Popularity Top 1000 (E&W)
- Births on record 1,665
Scotland
#144
2024 births
Struan is a boy's name of Scottish Gaelic origin meaning "stream," taken from a Perthshire estate that is the seat of Clan Donnachaidh. It ranks 144th in Scotland and appears in no other market we hold.
- Struan is a name of Scottish origin.
- Peaked in Scotland in 2022, when 75 babies were given the name.
- It has been rising over the past decade in Scotland.
- Today about 1 in 16,851 babies in England and Wales is given this name.
- First appears in birth records in 1974.
Struan 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 | 22 |
| 1980s | 77 |
| 1990s | 225 |
| 2000s | 418 |
| 2010s | 540 |
| 2020s (to 2024) | 272 |
What Struan means
Struan means stream, or place of streams, from the Gaelic sruthan, a small stream or brook. It is a landscape word used as a place name and then as a personal name, so it describes ground rather than a person.
Where Struan comes from
Struan comes from the Gaelic sruthan, a stream, and names a place in Atholl, Perthshire, near the meeting of the Garry and the Errochty. That estate is the seat of the chief of Clan Donnachaidh — the Robertsons — who is styled Struan Robertson, and it is that territorial designation rather than the village itself that carried the name forward. The Robertsons of Struan produced Alexander Robertson, the Jacobite poet-chief who was out in the risings of 1689, 1715 and 1745, a record nobody else matched. Struan is also the name of a Scottish festival bannock baked for Michaelmas, which is a separate word. The name's use for children is recent and almost entirely Scottish.
Struan in use
Struan ranks 144th in Scotland with 32 births in 2024 and is rising in our data with a peak in 2022. Our records carry it from 1974. It appears in no other market we hold — not England and Wales, not Ireland, not the United States — which makes it one of the most strictly Scottish names in that top 200, comparable to Ruairidh and Eilidh.
How popular is Struan?
In 2024, Struan was given to 35 babies in England and Wales, ranking #144 that year. It is well established in England and Wales.
Where Struan 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 Struan
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Struan also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Struan over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
Sibling names for Struan
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Struan — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Struan
What does the name Struan mean?
Struan means "stream," from the Gaelic sruthan.
Is Struan a place name?
Yes — an estate in Atholl, Perthshire, and the territorial designation of the chief of Clan Donnachaidh.
How do you pronounce Struan?
STROO-an, two syllables.
Is Struan used outside Scotland?
It appears in no other market in our data.
How popular is the name Struan?
In 2024, Struan was given to 35 babies in England and Wales, ranking #144 that year. It is well established in England and Wales.
Is Struan a girl's or a boy's name?
Struan is given almost entirely to boys in birth records.
When was Struan most popular?
Struan peaked in 2022, when 75 babies were given the name. It has been rising over the past decade.
Is Struan a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Struan currently ranks #144 in Scotland. It has been rising over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.