Oban
- Gender
- Boy
- Say it
- OH-bun
- Origin
- Scottish
- UK rank, 2025
- #2,202 for boys
Big in Scotland
Oban is a boys' name of Scottish origin, meaning “little bay”. In 2025 it ranked 2,202nd for boys in the UK (11 babies).
What does Oban mean?
Scottish: from the town, Gaelic An t-Oban
“little bay”
Shares its name with the west-coast Scottish town of Oban, the gateway to the Hebrides.
Is Oban a girl's or a boy's name?
Oban is a boys' name. In 2025, it was given to 3 girls and 11 boys in the UK.
How popular is Oban in the UK?
- Rank in 2025
- #2,202among boys
- Babies in 2025
- 11about 1 in 27,000 boys
- Five-year trend
- Risingup 29% in five years
- Same name in a class
- under 1%chance among 15 boys
In 2025, 11 boys in the UK were named Oban, making it the 2,202nd most popular name for boys. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 2,185th. Its busiest year was 2023, with 19 boys. 3 girls were also named Oban in 2025 (5,990th for girls).
Half of all the boys named Oban in the UK since 1996 were born between 2014 and 2023, the years shaded on the chart below.
Among boys in 2025, it was 3,656th in England and Wales and 495th in Scotland.
Oban in the UK, year by year
| Year | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 11 | #2,202 |
| 2024 | 19 | #1,470 |
| 2023 | 19 | #1,454 |
| 2022 | 15 | #1,708 |
| 2021 | 11 | #2,100 |
| 2020 | 10 | #2,185 |
| 2019 | 14 | #1,756 |
| 2018 | 14 | #1,803 |
| 2017 | 14 | #1,822 |
| 2016 | 4 | #4,214 |
| 2015 | 8 | #2,614 |
| 2014 | 3 | #4,829 |
| 2013 | 9 | #2,334 |
| 2012 | 9 | #2,382 |
| 2011 | 0 | – |
| 2010 | 0 | – |
| 2009 | 1 | #6,016 |
| 2008 | 0 | – |
| 2007 | 8 | #2,337 |
| 2006 | 4 | #3,522 |
| 2005 | 0 | – |
| 2004 | 5 | #2,691 |
| 2003 | 3 | #3,593 |
| 2002 | 0 | – |
| 2001 | 0 | – |
| 2000 | 5 | #2,237 |
| 1999 | 0 | – |
| 1998 | 1 | #3,884 |
Names like Oban
Names given in the same years and the same naming tradition, with a similar sound.
Lochlan Obi Rowan Brody Oluwadunsin Achim Obaloluwa Orhan Finn Oisin Oluwadarasimi Oluwafikayomi
More Scottish names
Isla Finley Logan Arabella Cameron Bonnie Paisley Carson Maxwell Brodie Finlay Blair Lennox Skye Knox Dallas
Sources
Figures from Baby names in England and Wales (Office for National Statistics), Babies' first names (National Records of Scotland) and Baby names (Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency). Nameling last updated them on 20 October 2026. How the figures are worked out, and the data to download.
To cite this page: Nameling, “Oban: name meaning, origin and popularity”, https://www.nameling.co.uk/names/oban, updated 20 October 2026.