Taran
Feminine · “thunder”
Taran is given to both — 560 girls and 2,073 boys since 1880. See Taran as a boy nameSee other names given to both
Taran is the Welsh word for thunder, and it was the name of the hero of one of the great American fantasy series for children. It is two syllables, given mostly to boys and to a real minority of girls.
How old is the name Taran?
Taran first appears in US birth records in 1967 — 58 years ago. The typical Taran alive today was born around 1990, making them about 35 years old. About 500 people named Taran are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Taran most popular?
Taran peaked in 1985, reaching #2021 nationally. See the whole 1985 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From Celtic taran- to Taran
The story of Taran
Roman writers recorded Taranis as a thunder god of the Gauls, and his name shares its root with the Welsh word taran. Lloyd Alexander, an American writer steeped in Welsh legend, gave the name to the hero of his Prydain Chronicles: Taran, an assistant pig-keeper who longs to be a hero and learns, over five books, what that costs. The books won a Newbery Medal and made the name familiar to a generation of readers.
Meaningscholars disagree
thunder, in Welsh
In Welsh, taran means thunder, and the Gaulish god Taranis took his name from the same Celtic root. As an American name Taran may also be a form near Tara or Taryn; the record does not say which a family meant.
How the name formed
- Celtic taran-
- Taran
Related forms: Taran · Taranis
Pronouncing Taran
TAIR-un
Stress on the first syllable. In Welsh, TAR-an, with a rolled r.
Nicknames for Taran
Limited
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
- 1967
- Most girls named
- 198553 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #2021reached in 1985
- Change vs 2012
- −12.5%7 in 2014, from 8
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.
Taran in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Taran in Welsh — same name
- Taranis in Gaulish — related form
Tarans among us
people named Taran 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
Taran 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
- Its meaning, thunder, is strong and memorable.
- It connects to a beloved series of books.
- It works for a boy or a girl.
- People will hear Tarun, Taryn or Terran and spell it accordingly.
- Most children given it are boys; a girl named Taran may be taken for a boy on paper.
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What they receive
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Taran
Feminine
Frequently asked
- How many Tarans are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 500 people named Taran are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Taran in 2025?
- Taran is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 girl names.
- Will my child share the name Taran with classmates?
- Taran will almost certainly be the only one in school.
More T names
The most-given names starting with T, all years combined.
Teresa#908 · Theresa#1548 · Tiffany#878 · Tammy#3645 · Taylor#403 · Tina#2778 · Tracy#2153 · Thelma#4661
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Taran? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Taran and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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