Rowan
Derived from an Old English word for a type of tree, a name meaning "little redhead".
Name Census estimates that about 65,598 living Americans carry the first name Rowan. It sits at #71 in the overall ranking, outside the top 50 but still well-represented. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 68.4% of registrations being male. The average person named Rowan today is around 10 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Rowan births was 2024 (5,840 babies). In terms of living bearers, it sits close to Mckenzie (65,254).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Rowan. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Rowan with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Rowan is a relatively new arrival in the SSA data. The average bearer is just 10 years old, meaning it gained most of its traction in the last two decades.
People living today
66K
~ 1 in 5,225 Americans
Peak year
2024
5,840 babies that year
Average age
10
years old
2024 SSA rank
#71
Tracked since 1916
Census
Rowan in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 40,085 people with the first name Rowan, which placed it at #1,047 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#1,047
National first-name rank
People counted
40K
40,085 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
13.3
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
81.6% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Rowan
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Rowan is White at 81.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (7.5%) and Hispanic (7.2%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Rowan described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Rowan at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White81.6% · 32,693
- Two or more races7.5% · 3,011
- Hispanic or Latino7.2% · 2,902
- Black or African American1.9% · 780
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.3% · 515
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 184
Gender
Gender distribution for Rowan
Rowan is one of the more evenly split names in the SSA data. Of the 66,362 total registrations, 45,386 (68.4%) were male and 20,976 (31.6%) were female.
Rowan as a male name
- Ranked #71 in 2024
- 4,647 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2024 (4,647 births)
Rowan as a female name
- Ranked #266 in 2024
- 1,193 female births in 2024
- Peak: 2018 (1,459 births)
2020 Census snapshot
The 2020 Census sex table shows Rowan on both sides of the split. Of the 40,085 people counted with this name, 25,312 were male (63.1%) and 14,773 were female (36.9%).
Popularity
Rowan: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Rowan from the 1910s through to the 2020s, spanning 12 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 28,941 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Rowan by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Rowan during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Rowans live
The SSA's state-level files cover 51 states and territories. California, Texas, Ohio recorded the most babies named Rowan, while Wyoming, Hawaii, District of Columbia recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 1,245 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Rowan
The name Rowan has its roots in the Old English language, deriving from the word "rawan," which referred to the rowan tree, also known as the mountain ash. This tree held significant importance in ancient Celtic and Germanic cultures, often associated with protection and magical properties.
In the Middle Ages, the name Rowan was primarily used as a surname, indicating a connection to the rowan tree or a place where it grew abundantly. It was during this period that the name began to transition into use as a given name, particularly in Scotland and Ireland.
One of the earliest recorded instances of Rowan as a first name dates back to the 16th century in Scotland. A notable bearer of the name was Rowan Och Dhu, a Scottish outlaw and cattle rustler from the late 16th century, who gained notoriety for his exploits in the Scottish Highlands.
In the 17th century, the name Rowan gained popularity among Puritan families in England and the American colonies. Puritans often chose names with naturalistic or biblical connotations, and the association of Rowan with the rowan tree likely appealed to their sensibilities.
Rowan Benjamin, born in 1757, was a prominent figure in the American Revolutionary War, serving as a colonel in the Continental Army. His bravery and leadership during the Battle of Monmouth earned him recognition and admiration from his contemporaries.
In the 19th century, Rowan Atkinson, born in 1955, became a renowned British actor and comedian, best known for his portrayal of the iconic character Mr. Bean. His comedic talent and physical humor have earned him a global following and numerous accolades.
Another notable bearer of the name was Rowan Williams, born in 1950, who served as the 104th Archbishop of Canterbury and the spiritual leader of the Anglican Communion from 2002 to 2012. He was highly respected for his intellectual prowess and his efforts to promote interfaith dialogue and understanding.
In more recent times, Rowan Blanchard, born in 2001, has gained recognition as an American actress and activist. She is known for her roles in television shows like "Girl Meets World" and for her advocacy work on various social and environmental issues.
Throughout history, the name Rowan has carried a sense of natural beauty and strength, reflecting its origins in the rowan tree. Its popularity has ebbed and flowed across different regions and cultures, but it has consistently held a place in various naming traditions, appealing to those seeking a name with a rich historical and naturalistic heritage.
Notable bearers
Famous people named Rowan
People
Rowan + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Rowan as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with R
Other first names starting with R with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Rowan: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Rowan?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 65,598 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Rowan going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 5,225 US residents.
Is Rowan a common name?
We classify Rowan as "Uncommon". It ranks above 99.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 66,362 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Rowan most popular?
The single biggest year for Rowan was 2024, when 5,840 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Rowan is about 10 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Rowan in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 40,085 people with the name Rowan, or 13.27 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #1,047 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Rowan in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Rowan?
The 2020 Census sex table shows Rowan on both sides of the split. Of the 40,085 people counted with this name, 25,312 were male (63.1%) and 14,773 were female (36.9%). The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Rowan?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Rowan is White at 81.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (7.5%) and Hispanic (7.2%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Rowan most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Rowan in the 2020 Census, accounting for 81.6% (32,693 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Rowan in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Rowan a male name?
Yes, 68.4% of people registered as Rowan in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Rowan still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Rowan in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Rowan can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
How many people are called Rowan?
You can see how many people share the name Rowan on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.