Gwynn
The welsh name meaning fair, blessed.
Name Census estimates that about 826 living Americans carry the first name Gwynn. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 88.6% of registrations being female. The average person named Gwynn today is around 48 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Gwynn births was 1954 (36 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Gwynn. 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
826
~ 1 in 414,957 Americans
Peak year
1954
36 babies that year
Average age
48
years old
1958 SSA rank
#3,139
Tracked since 1916
Census
Gwynn in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 1,085 people with the first name Gwynn, which placed it at #11,692 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
#11,692
National first-name rank
People counted
1.1K
1,085 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.4
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
85.0% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Gwynn
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Gwynn is White at 85.0%. The next largest groups are Black (5.4%) and Hispanic (4.2%). 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 Gwynn 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 Gwynn at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White85.0% · 922
- Black or African American5.4% · 59
- Hispanic or Latino4.2% · 46
- Two or more races3.1% · 34
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.1% · 12
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.1% · 12
Gender
Gender distribution for Gwynn
Gwynn leans heavily female at 88.6% of total registrations, but 133 boys have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Gwynn as a male name
- Ranked #3,139 in 1958
- 8 male births in 1958
- Peak: 1923 (11 births)
Gwynn as a female name
- Ranked #8,087 in 2024
- 13 female births in 2024
- Peak: 1954 (31 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Gwynn leans strongly female. 974 people counted with this name were female (90.0%), compared with 108 male bearers (10.0%).
Popularity
Gwynn: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Gwynn from the 1910s through to the 2020s, spanning 12 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1950s, with 252 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1950s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Gwynn 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 Gwynn during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Gwynns live
Origin
Meaning and history of Gwynn
The name Gwynn originates from the Welsh language and has its roots dating back to medieval times. It is derived from the Welsh word "gwyn," meaning "white" or "fair," and was likely used to describe someone with fair skin or blonde hair.
In Welsh mythology, Gwynn ap Nudd was a prominent figure, often depicted as the leader of the Otherworld hunt. He was associated with the underworld and was believed to be the ruler of the Annwn, the Welsh otherworld.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Gwynn can be found in the Welsh Triads, a collection of traditional Welsh folklore and history. Here, Gwynn ap Nudd is mentioned as one of the three notable battle-leaders of Britain.
The name Gwynn gained further prominence during the Middle Ages, particularly in Wales and the surrounding regions. It was a common name among the Welsh nobility and was borne by several prominent figures.
One notable historical figure with the name Gwynn was Gwynn Jones (c. 1328 – c. 1390), a Welsh writer and poet who is considered one of the most significant figures in medieval Welsh literature. His works, such as "Llyfr Du Caerfyrddin" (The Black Book of Carmarthen), are invaluable sources for understanding the culture and language of medieval Wales.
Another famous bearer of the name was Gwynn Williams (1501 – 1567), a Welsh scholar and clergyman who played a crucial role in the translation of the Bible into Welsh. His efforts helped preserve and promote the Welsh language during a time when it faced challenges from the English language.
In the field of sports, Gwynn ap Bleddyn (c. 1080 – c. 1130) was a Welsh archer and warrior who is said to have fought alongside King Henry I of England. His skills with the longbow were legendary, and he is considered one of the greatest archers of his time.
Outside of Wales, the name Gwynn also had some historical significance. Sir Gwynn Vaughan (c. 1560 – 1633) was an English naval officer and explorer who served under Sir Walter Raleigh. He was involved in several expeditions to the Americas and contributed to the establishment of English colonies in the New World.
While the name Gwynn has roots in Welsh culture and history, it has also been adopted and used in other parts of the world, albeit to a lesser extent. Its unique sound and meaning have made it a distinctive and memorable name throughout the centuries.
People
Gwynn + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Gwynn 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
Gwynn: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Gwynn?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 826 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Gwynn 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 414,957 US residents.
Is Gwynn a common name?
We classify Gwynn as "Very Rare". It ranks above 88.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,166 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Gwynn most popular?
The single biggest year for Gwynn was 1954, when 36 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Gwynn is about 48 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Gwynn in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 1,085 people with the name Gwynn, or 0.36 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #11,692 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 Gwynn 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 Gwynn?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Gwynn leans strongly female. 974 people counted with this name were female (90.0%), compared with 108 male bearers (10.0%). 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 Gwynn?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Gwynn is White at 85.0%. The next largest groups are Black (5.4%) and Hispanic (4.2%). 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 Gwynn most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Gwynn in the 2020 Census, accounting for 85.0% (922 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 Gwynn in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Gwynn a female name?
Yes, 88.6% of people registered as Gwynn 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 Gwynn still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Gwynn 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 Gwynn 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 the name Gwynn?
If you just want to know how many people share the name Gwynn, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.