Ryan
Top 1000
About Ryan
Ryan’s use as a given name was inspired by the surname Ryan, a variation of the Irish O’Riain meaning "son of Rían." Rían is composed of the Irish-Gaelic elements rí, meaning "king" and an, a diminutive suffix. Ryan is considered a unisex name in the US, where variant spellings Ryann and Ryanne are also valid for girls.
Ryan has been one of the most popular Irish names in America for decades; it had been in the Top 20 since 1976, and dropped out in 2010 but still ranks highly, even though parents now have such a wide choice of Irish surnames, from Flynn to Finnigan, and newer Ry names like Ryder.
Ryan (born Patrick) O'Neal first brought it to light in the mid-1960s, when parents saw Ryan as a fresher and more spirited alternative to names like Brian and Kevin.
Several male marquee Ryans still keep the name in the spotlight—think Ryan Seacrest, Ryan Reynolds, Ryan Gosling and Ryan Philippe.
Pronounced RY-un.
As of October 2026, Ryan ranked #99 in US births in 2025 SSA, peaked at #11 in 1990, Nameberry popularity #110.
Editor: Sophie Kihm
Sources: US popularity data is from the Social Security Administration. Meanings and origins are from Nameberry's name references.
Popularity & trends
Data table
| Year | US rank | Births | Per million |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | #37 | 9,098 | 4,736.4 |
| 2015 | #39 | 8,547 | 4,459.1 |
| 2016 | #40 | 8,258 | 4,351.5 |
| 2017 | #44 | 7,705 | 4,162.7 |
| 2018 | #46 | 6,940 | 3,821.3 |
| 2019 | #54 | 6,120 | 3,411 |
| 2020 | #57 | 5,341 | 3,094.3 |
| 2021 | #66 | 4,732 | 2,704.8 |
| 2022 | #74 | 4,399 | 2,519.5 |
| 2023 | #83 | 4,034 | 2,358.3 |
| 2024 | #87 | 3,892 | 2,259 |
| 2025 | #99 | 3,532 | 2,067.8 |
World rankings
Similar names
These 20 names were selected by our users looking for other names like Ryan.
- Austin
- Jordan
- Jackson
- Connor
- Cameron
- Mason
- Jayden
- Dylan
- Cody
- Tyler
- Chase
- Bradyn
- Logan
- Jaden
- Aiden
- Jake
- Ian
- Carter
- Riley
- Alex
Ryan on lists
Famous Ryans
- Ryan McCartan
American actor, singer and musician, part of the musical group 'The Girl And The Dreamcatcher' with Dove Cameron
- Ryan Farish
American electronic musician
- Ryan John Seacrest
American television host
- (Matthew) Ryan Philippe
American actor
- Ryan Paul Delahoussaye
American musician
- (George) Ryan Ross III
American musician
- Ryan McGinley
American photographer
- Ryan O'Neal
(born Charles Patrick Ryan O'Neal), American actor
- Ryan Rodney Reynolds
Canadian actor
- Ryan Thomas Gosling
Canadian actor
- Ryan Kelly
Irish singer
- Ryan Lochte
American swimmer
- Ryan Tannehill
American football player
- Ryan Fitzpatrick
American football player
- Ryan Paevey (born Ryan Jacob Paevey
Vlieger), American model and actor
- Ryan Allen Sheckler
American skateboarder
- Ryan Lane
American Actor
- Ryan James Pinkston
American actor
- Ryan Nyquist
professional BMX rider
- Ryan Scott Lee
American actor
- Ryan Earl Merriman
American actor
- (Ryan) Dallas Cook
American musician
- Ryan Gallant
American pro skateboarder
- Ryan Cartwright
English actor
- Ryan Betty
American singer
- Ryan Tedder
American singer and songwriter
- Ryan Adams
American singer and songwriter
- Ryan McLoughlin
member of Irish boyband HomeTown
- Ryan Kent
American child actor (twin brother of Hailey)
- Ryan Higa aka nigahiga
American YouTuber
- Ryan Fitzsimons aka LittleLizardGaming
Irish YouTuber
- Ryan Tyack
Australian archer
- Ryan Held
American swimmer
- Ryan Murphy
American swimmer
- Ryan Joshua "Jeffrey" Met
member of band AJR
- Ryan Christopher Shuck
former guitarist of Orgy, lead singer of Julien,K, guitarist of Dead by Sunrise
- Ryan Burt
former drummer for Australian band The Amity Affliction
- Ryan Bruce "Ryland" Adams
American YouTube vlogger
- Ryan Bergara
BuzzFeed Unsolved Host
- Ryan Otto Cassata
Transgender Musician
- Ryan John Shilling (b. 2013)
son of World Cup winner Amy Rodriguez
- Ryan Trahan
American youtuber
- Ryan Kaji (Ryan’s World)
American YouTuber
Ryan in pop culture
- Ryan Evans
The High School Musical Trilogy
- Ryan Atwood
character from "The O.C"
- Ryan Wolfe
CSI: Miami
- Ryan Howard
character on US TV series "The Office"
- Ryan Atkins
character from "Sims" series
- Ryan Newman
from TV series "Wilfred" played by Elijah Wood
- Ryan Walker
from movie "Boys and Girls"
- Ryan Dunne
from movie "Summer Catch"
- Ryan Sinclair
character from "Doctor Who"
- Ryan Kinkade
the MFE pilot in Voltron: Legendary Defender
- Ryan Dean
character in movie “Girl vs. Monster”
- Ryan Price
Character in the book series "Game Changers" by Rachel Reid