unisex name
Wren
REN
- Origin English
- Gender Unisex
- Syllables 1
- Letters 4
- Popularity Top 1000 (US)
- Births on record 21,858
the United States
#231
2025 births
Wren is a name of Old English origin taken from the bird, from wrenna. It is one of the newest nature names in wide use, and in British folklore the wren was called the king of birds.
- Wren is a name of English origin.
- Peaked in 2022, when 1,830 babies were given the name.
- It has been rising over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 2,168 babies in the United States is given this name.
- Wren started out as a boys' name and is now given almost entirely to girls.
- First appears in US birth records in 1888.
- 1 syllable, with the stress on syllable 1.
Wren 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 | 5 |
| 1910s | 17 |
| 1920s | 49 |
| 1930s | 13 |
| 1940s | 17 |
| 1950s | 85 |
| 1960s | 54 |
| 1970s | 87 |
| 1980s | 158 |
| 1990s | 245 |
| 2000s | 802 |
| 2010s | 5,147 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 9,223 |
What Wren means
Wren means the bird — a small brown songbird with an unusually loud call for its size. The name carries the bird's associations of smallness paired with boldness.
Where Wren comes from
Wren comes from the Old English wrenna, of uncertain earlier origin. British and Irish folklore gave the bird outsized importance: in the tale of the election of the king of birds, the wren wins by hiding in the eagle's feathers and flying higher when the eagle tires, and the Wren Day hunt on 26 December persisted in Ireland into the twentieth century. The surname Wren is separate and belongs to Sir Christopher Wren, the architect of St Paul's. Its use as a given name is almost entirely twenty-first century.
Wren in use
Our data records Wren for both sexes and shows it peaking in 2022 and still rising, at 137 in England and Wales. It first appears in our records in 1888 but was effectively unused until the 2010s — the modern nature-name wave, alongside Willow, Ivy, Fox and Bear.
How popular is Wren?
In 2025, Wren was given to 1,529 babies in the United States, ranking #231 that year. It is a well-established, commonly used name.
Where Wren 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 Wren
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Wren also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Wren over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
Wren 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 Wren
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Wren — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Wren
What does the name Wren mean?
Wren is the bird name, from the Old English wrenna.
Why is the wren called the king of birds?
In folklore it won a contest to fly highest by hiding in the eagle's feathers and rising when the eagle tired.
Is Wren a boy's or a girl's name?
Both. Our data records it as unisex, with girls currently in the majority.
How popular is the name Wren?
In 2025, Wren was given to 1,529 babies in the United States, ranking #231 that year. It is a well-established, commonly used name.
How many syllables are in Wren?
Wren has 1 syllable.
When was Wren most popular?
Wren peaked in 2022, when 1,830 babies were given the name. It has been rising over the past decade.
Is Wren a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Wren currently ranks #117 in the United States. It has been rising over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.