Robertson
Masculine · “son of Robert”
Robertson means 'son of Robert', and in Scotland it belongs to a Highland clan with a precise origin. Clan Donnachaidh took the surname from Robert Riabhach, 'grizzled Robert', a fifteenth-century chief who hunted down the men who murdered King James I at Perth in 1437.
How old is the name Robertson?
Robertson first appears in US birth records in 1916 — 109 years ago. The typical Robertson alive today was born around 1977, making them about 48 years old. About 400 people named Robertson are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Robertson most popular?
Robertson peaked in 1964, reaching #2040 nationally. See the whole 1964 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From Germanic Hrodebert to Robertson
The story of Robertson
Robert Riabhach, chief of Clan Donnachaidh in Atholl, captured the king's assassins after the murder at Perth, and the crown rewarded him by making his lands the barony of Struan. His descendants were known as Robert's sons, and Robertson became the clan's surname while the Gaelic name Donnachaidh stayed in use beside it. Elsewhere in Scotland and England the surname arose independently wherever a Robert's son needed telling apart from other men. As an American first name, Robertson follows the surname.
Meaning
son of Robert
An English and Scottish surname formed from Robert with -son. Robert itself is an old Germanic name built from words for 'fame' and 'bright'.
How the name formed
- Germanic Hrodebert
- Robert
- Robertson, 'son of Robert'
- Robertson as a given name
Related forms: Robson · Roberts · Robertsen
Pronouncing Robertson
ROB-ert-sun
Three syllables, stressed on the first.
Nicknames for Robertson
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
- 1916
- Most boys named
- 196416 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #2040reached in 1964
- Change vs 2021
- −28.6%5 in 2022, from 7
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.
Robertson in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Robson in English — related form
- Roberts in Welsh-English — related form
- Robertsen in Norwegian — related form
Robertsons among us
people named Robertson are estimated to be alive in the US today
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
Questions parents actually ask
Fashion outlook
Robertson sits outside the current charts, and that is its own kind of answer: naming cycles can only date the names they carried up. A name this rare has no decade stamped on it — it cannot go out of fashion, because it was never in.
Based on 146 years of naming cycles. How we read them
The trade-off
- Contains Robert, so Rob and Robbie come ready-made.
- A Scottish clan name with a specific, documented fifteenth-century story behind it.
- Never misspelled: everyone already knows Robert.
- It reads as a surname first, and a child with it will often be asked which name is the first.
- Three syllables ending in -son can feel long beside a long surname; most people will reach for Rob.
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Robertson
Masculine
Frequently asked
- How many Robertsons are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 400 people named Robertson are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Robertson in 2025?
- Robertson is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 boy names.
- Will my child share the name Robertson with classmates?
- Robertson will almost certainly be the only one in school.
More R names
The most-given names starting with R, all years combined.
Robert#92 · Richard#234 · Ronald#637 · Ryan#99 · Raymond#394 · Roger#832 · Ralph#1046 · Roy#525
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Robertson? See the current top 100.
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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