Ross
About Ross
Like Friends, Ross is off the air and into syndication as a baby name, having plummeted from its zenith in the late 80s to fall off the US Top 1000 in 2013. Today, Ross is more likely to be a dad name than a newborn name.
Ross originated as one of the many Scottish names taken from the surname of a famous clan, and is a place name in that country as well. It's a quiet, understated Celtic name that could come back in the current climate of single-syllable boy name popularity, though it will probably take a few years.
Other notable Rosses besides the Ross Geller character include tycoon and maverick presidential candidate H. (for Henry) Ross Perot, mystery writer Ross (born Kenneth) Macdonald, and one of the twin sons of Jane Pauley and Garry Trudeau.
Pronounced ROSS.
As of October 2026, Ross ranked #1465 in US births in 2025 SSA, peaked at #122 in 1889, Nameberry popularity #467.
Editor's take: The name Ross is a boy's name of Scottish origin meaning "upland, peninsula".
Popularity & trends
Data table
| Year | US rank | Births | Per million |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | #1,064 | 185 | 96.3 |
| 2015 | #1,165 | 160 | 83.5 |
| 2016 | #1,040 | 191 | 100.6 |
| 2017 | #1,162 | 162 | 87.5 |
| 2018 | #1,108 | 177 | 97.5 |
| 2019 | #1,350 | 133 | 74.1 |
| 2020 | #1,323 | 136 | 78.8 |
| 2021 | #1,295 | 147 | 84 |
| 2022 | #1,280 | 151 | 86.5 |
| 2023 | #1,525 | 116 | 67.8 |
| 2024 | #1,359 | 139 | 80.7 |
| 2025 | #1,465 | 122 | 71.4 |
World rankings
Similar names
These 20 names were selected by our users looking for other names like Ross.
Ross on lists
Famous Rosss
- Ross Farrelly
lead singer of Irish band The Strypes.
- Rostom Sipan "Ross" Bagdasarian Sr aka David Seville
American musician, creator of Alvin and the Chipmunks.
- Ross James Kemp
English actor and journalist.
- Ross Ventrone
American NFL football player.
- Ross Weaver
American NFL football player.
- Ross Dean Browner
American NFL football player.
- Ross Dan Hutchins
English tennis player.
- Ross Robert Barnett
U.S. politician; governor of Mississippi.
- Ross Andrew Wilson
Australian musician.
- Ross Bass
U.S. Congressman and Postmaster from Tennessee.
- (Henry) Ross Perot
American businessman and politician.
- Ross MacDonald
British bassist for the band The 1975.
- Ross Alexander Collins
U.S. Congressman from Mississippi.
- Ross Shor Lynch
American actor/singer.
- Ross Hull
Canadian actor.
- Ross Copperman
American songwriter.
- Ross Aaron Malinger
American actor.
- Albert Rostron "Ross" Parker
English songwriter.
- Ross Naess
son of singer Diana Ross and Arne Naess.
- Ross Markham Noble
English comedian.
- Ross Rebagliati
Canadian Olympic snowboarder.
- Ross McCall
Scottish actor.
- Ross Alexander (born Alexander Ross Smith)
American actor.
- Ross "The Intern" Mathews
American comedian and TV personality.
- Ronald Ross
British physician and Nobel Prize winner.
- Jensen Ross Ackles
American actor.
- Ross Fleming Butler
American actor.
- Ross Botsford aka YourPalRoss
American YouTuber.
- Ross Hornby
British YouTuber, member of HATfilms.
- Ross Butler
American actor
- Ross Barkley
English professional footballer
- Ross Andrew Parker (b. 1984)
17 year old white British boy who was stabbed, beaten and kicked to death because he was white in 2001
Ross in pop culture
- Ross Eustace Geller
a main character on TV's "Friends"
- John Ross Ewing I
II, and III, characters on TV's "Dallas"
- Ross
character in Shakespeare's "Macbeth"
- Ross O'Carroll
Kelly, character in novels by Paul Howard
- Ross Poldark
main character in the “Poldark” book and TV series
- Ross Lane
character on TV's "The Patty Duke Show"