Garrin
Of Gaelic origin meaning "garden" or "little garden".
Name Census estimates that about 406 living Americans carry the first name Garrin. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Garrin today is around 29 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Garrin births was 2000 (22 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Garrin. 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.
People living today
406
~ 1 in 844,223 Americans
Peak year
2000
22 babies that year
Average age
29
years old
2017 SSA rank
#12,903
Tracked since 1965
Popularity
Garrin: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Garrin from the 1960s through to the 2010s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 160 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2000s peak, Garrin remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Garrin 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 Garrin during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Garrins live
Origin
Meaning and history of Garrin
The given name Garrin has its origins in the ancient Celtic languages spoken across the British Isles and parts of continental Europe. Its roots can be traced back to the Old Irish word "gáir", meaning "loud" or "shout". The name is believed to have first emerged as a descriptive term for a loud or boisterous individual, before eventually becoming a personal name in its own right.
The earliest recorded use of Garrin as a personal name dates back to the 6th century CE, when it appeared in various Irish annals and monastic records. During this period, it was primarily used by members of the Celtic Christian monastic communities that flourished across Ireland and parts of Scotland.
One of the earliest known historical figures to bear the name Garrin was Saint Garrin of Leighlin, an Irish monk and abbot who lived in the 7th century CE. He is revered as the founder of the Leighlin monastic settlement in County Carlow, Ireland, and is celebrated in the Irish Catholic tradition.
In the medieval period, the name Garrin gained wider popularity among the Gaelic nobility and warrior class. It is recorded in various Irish and Scottish genealogical records from this time, often associated with prominent clans and families.
Garrin mac Áeda (c. 950 - 1012) was a notable Irish king of the Uí Fiachrach Aidne dynasty, who ruled in what is now County Galway during the late 10th and early 11th centuries. He is remembered for his military exploits against the Vikings and his efforts to consolidate power in the region.
Another historical figure named Garrin was Garrin of Mar (c. 1045 - 1115), a Scottish nobleman and one of the primary leaders of the Celtic resistance against the Norman conquest of Scotland in the late 11th century. He is celebrated in Scottish folklore as a symbol of defiance against foreign occupation.
In the 12th century, Garrin mac Murchadha (c. 1130 - 1186) was a renowned Irish warrior and poet, who served as a leader of the Uí Bhriain clan in the Kingdom of Thomond. His poetic works, which celebrated the valor and exploits of his kinsmen, are among the earliest examples of surviving Irish vernacular literature.
Throughout the centuries, the name Garrin has retained a presence in various Celtic cultures and traditions, albeit with varying degrees of popularity. While it may not be as widely used today as it once was, it remains a testament to the rich linguistic and cultural heritage of the Celtic peoples.
People
Garrin + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Garrin as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with G
Other first names starting with G with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Garrin: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Garrin?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 406 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Garrin 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 844,223 US residents.
Is Garrin a common name?
We classify Garrin as "Very Rare". It ranks above 82.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 418 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Garrin most popular?
The single biggest year for Garrin was 2000, when 22 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Garrin is about 29 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Garrin a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Garrin in the SSA data are male. 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.
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.