Gwynne
Of Welsh origin, meaning fair, blessed, or white.
Name Census estimates that about 973 living Americans carry the first name Gwynne. It is a predominantly female name (97.9% of registrations). The average person named Gwynne today is around 58 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Gwynne births was 1951 (48 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Gwynne. 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
973
~ 1 in 352,266 Americans
Peak year
1951
48 babies that year
Average age
58
years old
1947 SSA rank
#3,953
Tracked since 1920
Gender
Gender distribution for Gwynne
Gwynne leans heavily female at 97.9% of total registrations, but 30 boys have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Gwynne as a male name
- Ranked #3,953 in 1947
- 5 male births in 1947
- Peak: 1926 (8 births)
Gwynne as a female name
- Ranked #14,028 in 2023
- 6 female births in 2023
- Peak: 1951 (48 births)
Popularity
Gwynne: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Gwynne from the 1920s through to the 2020s, spanning 11 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1950s, with 351 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
Gwynne 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 Gwynne during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Gwynnes live
The SSA's state-level files cover 7 states and territories. New York, Illinois, Pennsylvania recorded the most babies named Gwynne, while South Carolina, Ohio, New Jersey recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 13 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Gwynne
The name Gwynne is a Welsh name that has its origins in the ancient Celtic language spoken in parts of Britain and northwestern Europe. It is derived from the Welsh word "gwyn," which means "fair" or "blessed."
The name was popular among the early Welsh and Celtic peoples, who valued physical beauty and considered fair complexions to be a sign of distinction. It was often given to children as a way of expressing the parents' hope for the child to possess a fair and radiant countenance.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Gwynne can be found in the Welsh Triads, a collection of traditional stories and folklore dating back to the Middle Ages. In these tales, the name is associated with characters renowned for their beauty and virtue.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Gwynne. One of the most famous was Gwynne ap Nudd (c. 1275–1337), a Welsh warrior and leader who played a significant role in the Wars of Welsh Independence against the English.
Another prominent figure was Gwynne Vaughan (1512–1588), a Welsh poet and playwright who wrote extensively in both Welsh and English. His works were influential in preserving and promoting the Welsh language and culture during the Renaissance period.
In the 17th century, Gwynne Wynn (1619–1684) was a prominent Welsh landowner and Member of Parliament who was instrumental in the restoration of the monarchy in England after the English Civil War.
Moving forward to the 19th century, Gwynne Dyer (1855–1934) was a Welsh-born Australian businessman and politician who served as a member of the Parliament of Victoria and played a key role in the development of the mining industry in Australia.
More recently, Gwynne Dyer (born 1943) is a Canadian historian, journalist, and military historian who has written extensively on international affairs and has been a prominent commentator on global security issues.
While the name Gwynne has its roots in Welsh and Celtic culture, it has since been adopted and used across various regions and cultures, reflecting the rich diversity and shared heritage of names and their meanings.
People
Gwynne + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Gwynne 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
Gwynne: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Gwynne?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 973 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Gwynne 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 352,266 US residents.
Is Gwynne a common name?
We classify Gwynne as "Very Rare". It ranks above 89.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,427 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Gwynne most popular?
The single biggest year for Gwynne was 1951, when 48 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Gwynne is about 58 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Gwynne a female name?
Yes, 97.9% of people registered as Gwynne 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.
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.