Farren
An English given name transferred from an English surname of Celtic origin meaning "traveler" or "wanderer".
Name Census estimates that about 987 living Americans carry the first name Farren. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 69.6% of registrations being female. The average person named Farren today is around 30 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Farren births was 1986 (88 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Farren. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Farren with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Farren started out as a boys' name but over the decades crossed over and is now given to girls far more often.
People living today
987
~ 1 in 347,269 Americans
Peak year
1986
88 babies that year
Average age
30
years old
2024 SSA rank
#8,504
Tracked since 1952
Census
Farren in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 916 people with the first name Farren, which placed it at #13,257 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#13,257
National first-name rank
People counted
916
916 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.3
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
65.6% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Farren
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Farren is White at 65.6%. The next largest groups are Black (18.2%) and Two or More Races (5.9%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Farren described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Farren at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White65.6% · 601
- Black or African American18.2% · 167
- Two or more races5.9% · 54
- Hispanic or Latino4.6% · 42
- American Indian and Alaska Native3.1% · 28
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.6% · 24
Gender
Gender distribution for Farren
Farren is one of the more evenly split names in the SSA data. Of the 1,037 total registrations, 315 (30.4%) were male and 722 (69.6%) were female.
Farren as a male name
- Ranked #8,504 in 2024
- 9 male births in 2024
- Peak: 1966 (16 births)
Farren as a female name
- Ranked #9,100 in 2024
- 11 female births in 2024
- Peak: 1986 (77 births)
2020 Census snapshot
The 2020 Census sex table shows Farren on both sides of the split. Of the 916 people counted with this name, 313 were male (34.2%) and 603 were female (65.8%).
Popularity
Farren: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Farren from the 1950s through to the 2020s, spanning 8 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1980s, with 290 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1980s peak, Farren remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Farren by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Farren during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Farrens live
The SSA's state-level files cover 5 states and territories. California, Texas, Florida recorded the most babies named Farren, while Michigan, Louisiana, Florida recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 12 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Farren
The name Farren is believed to have originated from the ancient Celtic language, spoken by various tribes across Europe during the Iron Age and Roman era. One of the proposed roots of the name is the Celtic word "fear" or "fer," meaning "man" or "warrior." This suggests that Farren may have been initially used as a name to denote strength, courage, or masculinity.
Another possibility is that Farren stems from the Old Irish word "ferann," which translates to "land" or "territory." In this context, the name could have been initially given to individuals who possessed or governed over a particular region or landholding. The name's spelling has evolved over time, with variations such as Farran, Ferren, and Farrin appearing in historical records.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Farren can be traced back to the 7th century AD, when a Celtic chieftain named Farren mac Áedán is mentioned in the Annals of Ulster, an ancient chronicle of medieval Irish history. This reference suggests that the name was in use among the Celtic populations of Ireland during the Middle Ages.
In the 12th century, a notable figure named Farren O'Melaghlin was recorded as the King of Meath, an ancient kingdom in Ireland. This indicates that the name held significance and was associated with nobility and leadership during this period.
Moving forward in history, one of the most famous individuals named Farren was the 19th-century English actor and playwright William Farren (1786-1861). He was a prominent figure in the theatrical world and is remembered for his roles in various Shakespearean plays and comedies.
Another well-known bearer of the name was Sir George Farren (1859-1942), a British politician and barrister who served as a Member of Parliament and was knighted for his services to the legal profession.
In the United States, Farren Rivkin (1923-2019) was a notable figure in the entertainment industry, known for his work as a film producer and talent agent, representing several high-profile actors and celebrities.
Farren Blackburn (born 1971) is a contemporary British television director and producer, best known for his work on shows like "Daredevil," "Doctor Who," and "Chilling Adventures of Sabrina."
While the name Farren may have originated from ancient Celtic roots, it has transcended its linguistic boundaries and has been adopted by various cultures and societies throughout history, showcasing its enduring appeal and versatility.
People
Farren + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Farren as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with F
Other first names starting with F with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Farren: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Farren?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 987 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Farren going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 347,269 US residents.
Is Farren a common name?
We classify Farren as "Very Rare". It ranks above 90% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,037 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Farren most popular?
The single biggest year for Farren was 1986, when 88 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Farren is about 30 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Farren in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 916 people with the name Farren, or 0.30 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #13,257 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Farren in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Farren?
The 2020 Census sex table shows Farren on both sides of the split. Of the 916 people counted with this name, 313 were male (34.2%) and 603 were female (65.8%). The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Farren?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Farren is White at 65.6%. The next largest groups are Black (18.2%) and Two or More Races (5.9%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Farren most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Farren in the 2020 Census, accounting for 65.6% (601 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Farren in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Farren a female name?
Yes, 69.6% of people registered as Farren in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Farren still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Farren in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Farren can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
How many people have Farren as a first name?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.