Barron
Masculine · “from the noble title "baron”
Barron began as a surname and, before that, as a rank: the baron who held land from a king. It has been quietly given to American boys across generations, never crowding a classroom but never disappearing either, and it carries the same two-beat English shape as Harrison and Warren.
How old is the name Barron?
Barron first appears in US birth records in 1913 — 112 years ago. The typical Barron alive today was born around 1994, making them about 31 years old. About 4,900 people named Barron are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Barron most popular?
Barron peaked in 1966, reaching #750 nationally. Today it ranks #790, 40 places below that high. See the whole 1966 chart.
Barron appears on these lists:
Where it comes from
From baro (Late Latin) to Barron
The story of Barron
The word arrived in English with the Normans in the eleventh century, as baron — a man holding land directly from the crown. Like knight, marshal and squire, it hardened into a family name for those who served such a household or, occasionally, for those who held the rank, and Barron became established as a surname in England, Scotland and Ireland. American parents did what they have long done with English surnames: moved it to the front of the name, keeping the double r that marks it as a family name rather than a bare title. It has stayed in that column ever since, given steadily rather than fashionably.
Meaning
from the noble title "baron"
The path is clear — the Old French title baron, spelled with the double r of the surname Barron. What the word meant before it meant nobleman is less settled: Late Latin baro is read by some scholars as "man, freeman, warrior", while in classical Latin the same word could mean a simpleton. The title sense is the one the name inherited.
How the name formed
- baroLate Latin
- baronOld French
- Barronsurname
- Barrongiven name
Related forms: Baron · Baron · Barone · Barón
Pronouncing Barron
BAIR-un
Stress on the first syllable. In most American accents it sounds identical to the word "barren" and to the spelling Baron — the difference lives on paper, not in the mouth.
Nicknames for Barron
High
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
- 1913
- Most boys named
- 2025320 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #750reached in 1966
- Change vs 2023
- +150.0%320 in 2025, from 128
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.
Barron in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Baron in English — spelling variant
- Baron in French — related form
- Barone in Italian — related form
- Barón in Spanish — related form
Strongest US states over the last decade: Texas, California, Florida.
Barrons among us
people named Barron are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 5,338 born in 2025 was named Barron
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Spellings of Barron
- #790
- Barron on the 2025 chart
- #528
- counting every spelling
The SSA counts spellings, not names. Barron went to 320 boys in 2025, but Baron is the same name said out loud. Together the 2 spellings went to 455, which makes it the 528th most-given boys’ name of the year — 262 places above the chart.
- Barron320
- Baron135
About 1 boy in 3,754 born in 2025 was given one of these spellings — against 1 in 5,338 for Barron itself.
Spellings are grouped by a fixed rule that folds interchangeable English spellings of one sound (ck/k, ph/f, x/ks, a non-initial y for i) and keeps vowels apart, so Sean and Shawn stay separate names. It errs towards splitting: a family here is never larger than the truth. SSA national data, 2025. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Darwyn test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Barron's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Darwyn climbed just as high around 1935, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Darwyn's path sketches the road Barron is walking now.
Barron is on its second act. Revived names age gently: the generation that wore them first is far enough away that the name feels classic rather than dated.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Where Barron is headed
Barron looks set to keep climbing gently, with roughly 23% more babies a year by 2030 if the current curve holds. Its history is short or jumpy, though, so read this as a sketch rather than a promise.
Low 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.
Barron beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Barron in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- The spelling is already familiar from the surname Barron, so people can read it correctly on sight even when they haven't met one.
- A surname-style first name with a documented line back to Norman French, rather than a recent invention.
- Comes with ready-made short forms — Barry, Bear — that don't have to be manufactured.
- Recognizable across English, French, Italian and Spanish through the title itself, so the word travels even where the given name doesn't.
- Baron or Barron? Both exist and both are given to boys, so expect a lifetime of clarifying the second r — and of the occasional letter arriving with one.
- In American speech it is a homophone of "barren". Adults rarely comment; children sometimes do.
- The name is also a title, and some listeners hear it that way first — grand, aristocratic, a little formal on a small child.
- The best-known American bearer right now is a son of a US president, which can steer first reactions toward politics for a while. Associations like that tend to loosen as the name spreads.
Nobody names a baby alone.
Put Barron 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 Barron? Hide it among decoys and let them guess.
What they receive
Someone added a name to your list
Barron
Masculine · #790 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Barrons are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 4,900 people named Barron are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How do you spell Barron?
- Barron is the most-used spelling in US records — 320 of the 455 babies given the name in 2025. The others recorded are Baron.
- How popular is the name Barron in 2025?
- Barron ranks #790 among US boy names in 2025, with 320 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Barron?
- About 1 in every 5,338 US boys born in 2025 was named Barron — 320 in all.
- Will my child share the name Barron with classmates?
- Barron will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Barron
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Ray#791 · Fisher#791 · Elisha#788 · Darius#788 · Jaxxon#793 · Remi#787 · Teo#793 · Jamison#785
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Barron? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Barron 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