Taran
Masculine · “thunder”
Taran is given to both — 2,073 boys and 560 girls since 1880. See Taran as a girl 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 1971 — 54 years ago. The typical Taran alive today was born around 2001, making them about 24 years old. About 2,000 people named Taran are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Taran most popular?
Taran peaked in 1992, reaching #1004 nationally. Today it ranks #2884, 1,880 places below that high. See the whole 1992 chart.
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
- 1971
- Most boys named
- 1992117 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1004reached in 1992
- Change vs 2024
- +38.7%43 in 2025, from 31
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
Strongest US states over the last decade: California.
Tarans among us
people named Taran are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 39,723 born in 2025 was named Taran
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 Larrie test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Taran's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Larrie climbed just as high around 1941, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Larrie's path sketches the road Taran is walking now.
Taran 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 Taran is headed
Taran should hold steady through 2030 — the curve is flat, and flat curves are the most predictable kind.
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.
Taran beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Taran in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
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.
Nobody names a baby alone.
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What they receive
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Taran
Masculine · #2884 in the U.S.
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 2,000 people named Taran are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Taran in 2025?
- Taran ranks #2884 among US boy names in 2025, with 43 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Taran?
- About 1 in every 39,723 US boys born in 2025 was named Taran — 43 in all.
- Will my child share the name Taran with classmates?
- Taran will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Taran
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Kamal#2884 · Blu#2884 · Rafi#2884 · Minh#2884 · Shaquille#2884 · Arnav#2884 · Jayven#2884 · Hiro#2884
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Taran? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Taran and another name?
See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.
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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
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