Arrow
Masculine · “arrow”
Arrow is given to both — 1,717 boys and 858 girls since 1880. See Arrow as a girl nameSee other names given to both
Arrow is a Norse borrowing — ör — that replaced the native English word, and the older term survives only in 'flechette' and in place names.
How old is the name Arrow?
Arrow first appears in US birth records in 1971 — 54 years ago. The typical Arrow is a kid of about 6 — this name's wave is very recent. About 1,700 people named Arrow are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Arrow most popular?
Arrow peaked in 2018, reaching #1122 nationally. Today it ranks #1976, 854 places below that high. See the whole 2018 chart.
Arrow appears on this list:
Where it comes from
From arwe to Arrow
The story of Arrow
The English longbow made the arrow a decisive weapon at Crécy and Agincourt, and archery practice was compulsory by statute for centuries. Object word-names rose in American naming from the 2010s alongside Blade, Bear and Fox. Arrow appears in the registers for both sexes and is in current use.
Meaning
arrow
From the Old English arwe, itself likely reinforced by the Old Norse ör, from a root about a bow's shaft. English had several words for the missile and kept this one. The word is ordinary and the meaning undisputed.
How the name formed
- arwe
- arrow
- Arrow
Related forms: Ör · Arro
Pronouncing Arrow
AIR-oh
Two syllables, stress on the first. It is a homophone of the ordinary English noun.
Nicknames for Arrow
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1971
- Most boys named
- 2018172 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1122reached in 2018
- Change vs 2024
- −23.0%77 in 2025, from 100
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Arrow in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Ör in Norse — related form
- Arro in English — spelling variant
Strongest US states over the last decade: California, Texas, Florida.
Arrows among us
people named Arrow are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 22,183 born in 2025 was named Arrow
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Candelario test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Arrow's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Candelario climbed just as high around 1945, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Candelario's path sketches the road Arrow is walking now.
Arrow sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Where Arrow is headed
Arrow is easing off slowly — about 17% fewer babies a year by 2030 if the trend continues.
Medium confidence — fitted on official counts through 2025.
A damped-trend projection of the official birth data — a sketch of momentum, not a promise. Every name's forecast, ranked.
Arrow beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Arrow in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- The meaning is concrete and needs no explanation anywhere.
- The compulsory archery statutes are a genuinely good piece of English history.
- Two clean syllables with no pronunciation risk.
- It is an ordinary English noun for a weapon.
- It is thoroughly unisex and very new as a given name.
- A television series carries the name for many people.
Nobody names a baby alone.
Put Arrow to the vote.
Add it to a family vote or a couple’s swipe deck — the other person gets one card, a simple answer and room to say why. No app, no account for them.
Only the people you invite can see your list.
Already decided on Arrow? Hide it among decoys and let them guess.
What they receive
Someone added a name to your list
Arrow
Masculine · #1976 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Arrows are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 1,700 people named Arrow are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Arrow in 2025?
- Arrow ranks #1976 among US boy names in 2025, with 77 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Arrow?
- About 1 in every 22,183 US boys born in 2025 was named Arrow — 77 in all.
- Will my child share the name Arrow with classmates?
- Arrow will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Arrow
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Donte#1976 · Davon#1976 · Kru#1976 · Khyree#1976 · Winter#1976 · Jaleel#1976 · Jacobo#1976 · Yug#1976
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Arrow? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Arrow and another name?
See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.
Compare side by sideIn a hurry? Just pick a winner — one tap, no sign-up, and you see how everyone else voted.
Weighing a whole shortlist? Add the rest in the builder, or settle it with a bracket.
Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
No advertising trackers and no data sellinghow we handle your dataindependent and founder-run, about Name Battle