Taran
- Gender
- Boy
- Say it
- TARR-an
- Origin
- Welsh
- UK rank, 2025
- #763 for boys
- US rank, 2025
- #2,883 for boys
Taran is a boys' name of Welsh origin, meaning “thunder”. In 2025 it ranked 763rd for boys in the UK (50 babies) and 2,883rd for boys in the US (43 babies).
What does Taran mean?
Welsh: also a separate Sanskrit-derived name in Punjabi families
“thunder”
Welsh taran means thunder, linked to the Celtic thunder god Taranis; Taran is also the hero of Lloyd Alexander's Prydain novels.
More on Wiktionary.
Is Taran a girl's or a boy's name?
Taran is a boys' name. In 2025, it was given to 4 girls and 50 boys in the UK and 43 boys in the US.
How popular is Taran in the UK?
- Rank in 2025
- 763rd among boys
- Babies in 2025
- 50 about 1 in 6,000 boys
- Five-year trend
- Steady up 24% in five years
- Same name in a class
- under 1% chance among 15 boys
In 2025, 50 boys in the UK were named Taran, making it the 763rd most popular name for boys. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 1,007th. Its busiest year was 2007, with 61 boys. 4 girls were also named Taran in 2025 (4,935th for girls).
It has been given to more boys each year for the last 3 years. 2025 had more boys named Taran than any year since 2019.
Half of all the boys named Taran in the UK since 1996 were born between 2003 and 2017. It was already well used in 1996, when the records begin, so earlier boys aren't counted.
In 2025, 81 boys in the UK were given Taran or a name that sounds the same. With every name's spellings counted this way, that ranks #500, up from #763 for this spelling alone.
- Taran 50
- Taron 31
Among boys in 2025, it was 702nd in England and Wales.
Taran in the UK, year by year
| Year | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 50 | #763 |
| 2024 | 45 | #813 |
| 2023 | 44 | #816 |
| 2022 | 32 | #1,024 |
| 2021 | 39 | #878 |
| 2020 | 31 | #1,007 |
| 2019 | 56 | #679 |
| 2018 | 25 | #1,173 |
| 2017 | 34 | #985 |
| 2016 | 30 | #1,056 |
| 2015 | 43 | #812 |
| 2014 | 30 | #1,031 |
| 2013 | 46 | #768 |
| 2012 | 55 | #688 |
| 2011 | 45 | #773 |
| 2010 | 40 | #817 |
| 2009 | 57 | #629 |
| 2008 | 61 | #598 |
| 2007 | 61 | #566 |
| 2006 | 50 | #631 |
| 2005 | 48 | #613 |
| 2004 | 60 | #490 |
| 2003 | 60 | #459 |
| 2002 | 55 | #450 |
| 2001 | 46 | #498 |
| 2000 | 47 | #485 |
| 1999 | 36 | #585 |
| 1998 | 34 | #596 |
| 1997 | 30 | #625 |
| 1996 | 33 | #563 |
How popular is Taran in the US?
- Rank in 2025
- 2,883rd among boys
- Babies in 2025
- 43 about 1 in 40,000 boys
- Five-year trend
- Steady down 7% in five years
- Same name in a class
- under 1% chance among 15 boys
In 2025, 43 boys in the US were named Taran, making it the 2,883rd most popular name for boys. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 3,568th. Its busiest year was 1992, with 117 boys. It first appears in the records in 1971.
2025 had more boys named Taran than any year since 2018.
Half of all the boys named Taran in the US since 1880 were born between 1994 and 2011, the years shaded on the chart below.
In 2025, 83 boys in the US were given Taran or a name that sounds the same. With every name's spellings counted this way, that ranks #1,646, up from #2,883 for this spelling alone.
In 1982, 78% of the babies named Taran in the US were girls. By 2014 it was 13%, with more boys than girls since 1990.
Taran in the US, year by year
| Year | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 43 | #2,883 |
| 2024 | 31 | #3,603 |
| 2023 | 25 | #4,216 |
| 2022 | 29 | #3,772 |
| 2021 | 31 | #3,579 |
| 2020 | 30 | #3,568 |
| 2019 | 33 | #3,423 |
| 2018 | 43 | #2,795 |
| 2017 | 30 | #3,582 |
| 2016 | 32 | #3,440 |
| 2015 | 45 | #2,683 |
| 2014 | 48 | #2,540 |
| 2013 | 41 | #2,802 |
| 2012 | 49 | #2,516 |
| 2011 | 47 | #2,589 |
| 2010 | 41 | #2,873 |
| 2009 | 55 | #2,347 |
| 2008 | 47 | #2,631 |
| 2007 | 65 | #2,094 |
| 2006 | 52 | #2,374 |
| 2005 | 36 | #2,898 |
| 2004 | 50 | #2,279 |
| 2003 | 52 | #2,124 |
| 2002 | 48 | #2,191 |
| 2001 | 50 | #2,082 |
| 2000 | 48 | #2,083 |
| 1999 | 82 | #1,418 |
| 1998 | 91 | #1,298 |
| 1997 | 75 | #1,435 |
| 1996 | 82 | #1,319 |
| 1995 | 95 | #1,183 |
| 1994 | 98 | #1,142 |
| 1993 | 104 | #1,093 |
| 1992 | 117 | #1,001 |
| 1991 | 31 | #2,289 |
| 1990 | 18 | #3,303 |
| 1989 | 11 | #4,521 |
| 1988 | 13 | #3,700 |
| 1987 | 12 | #3,726 |
| 1986 | 13 | #3,437 |
| 1985 | 6 | #5,780 |
| 1984 | 16 | #2,823 |
| 1983 | 7 | #4,904 |
| 1982 | 11 | #3,690 |
| 1981 | 6 | #5,466 |
| 1980 | 8 | #4,493 |
| 1979 | 13 | #3,167 |
| 1978 | 12 | #3,214 |
| 1977 | 6 | #5,121 |
| 1976 | 10 | #3,469 |
| 1975 | 7 | #4,307 |
| 1974 | 6 | #4,632 |
| 1973 | 8 | #3,692 |
| 1972 | 5 | #4,983 |
| 1971 | 9 | #3,368 |
Names like Taran
Names given in the same years and the same naming tradition, with a similar sound.
Dylan, Rohan, Arjan, Imran, Arjun, Aryan, Ronan, Avi, Logan, Aarav, Odhran, Ishaan
Other spellings of Taran
Names related to Taran
More Welsh names
Owen, Winnie, Maddox, Morgan, Idris, Reese, Bowen, Griffin, Rhys, Gavin, Reece, Nia, Seren, Gwendolyn, Winifred, Meredith
Sources
Figures from Baby names in England and Wales (Office for National Statistics), Babies' first names (National Records of Scotland), Baby names (Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency) and Popular Baby Names (US Social Security Administration). Nameling last updated them on 20 October 2026. How the figures are worked out, and the data to download.
To cite this page: Nameling, “Taran: name meaning, origin and popularity”, https://www.nameling.co.uk/names/taran, updated 20 October 2026.