Palyn
A feminine given name of uncertain origin, possibly derived from Greek.
Name Census estimates that about 106 living Americans carry the first name Palyn. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Palyn today is around 15 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Palyn births was 2009 (31 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Palyn. 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
106
~ 1 in 3,233,531 Americans
Peak year
2009
31 babies that year
Average age
15
years old
2017 SSA rank
#17,805
Tracked since 2008
Popularity
Palyn: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Palyn from the 2000s through to the 2010s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 68 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Palyn 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 Palyn during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Palyn
The name Palyn is believed to have originated from the ancient Greek word "palinus," which means "wanderer" or "traveler." This name has its roots in the classical era of Greek civilization, dating back to around the 5th century BCE.
In Greek mythology, there was a character named Palinurus, who was the skilled helmsman of Aeneas' ship in Virgil's epic poem, the Aeneid. Palinurus was known for his expertise in navigation and his ability to guide the ship through treacherous waters. It is possible that the name Palyn may have derived from this mythological figure.
The earliest recorded instances of the name Palyn can be traced back to ancient Greek inscriptions and historical records. One notable figure with this name was Palyn of Crotona, a Greek philosopher who lived in the 6th century BCE and was a follower of the Pythagorean school of thought.
During the Middle Ages, the name Palyn was relatively uncommon, but it did appear in some historical documents. For example, there was a Palyn de Vere, an English nobleman who lived in the 13th century and served as the Sheriff of Essex.
In the Renaissance period, the name Palyn gained some popularity among the intellectual circles of Europe. One famous bearer of this name was Palyn Gayer, a French humanist scholar and poet who lived in the 16th century and was known for his works on philosophy and literature.
Another notable figure with the name Palyn was Palyn Almondbury, an English mathematician and astronomer who lived in the 17th century. He made significant contributions to the field of celestial mechanics and was a member of the Royal Society.
In the 19th century, the name Palyn was used by Palyn Ravensworth, a British explorer and naturalist who traveled extensively in Africa and documented his observations of the flora and fauna of the continent.
Throughout its long history, the name Palyn has been associated with a sense of adventure, exploration, and intellectual curiosity, reflecting its origins as a name meaning "wanderer" or "traveler."
People
Palyn + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Palyn as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with P
Other first names starting with P with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Palyn: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Palyn?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 106 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Palyn 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 3,233,531 US residents.
Is Palyn a common name?
We classify Palyn as "Very Rare". It ranks above 65.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 107 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Palyn most popular?
The single biggest year for Palyn was 2009, when 31 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Palyn is about 15 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Palyn a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Palyn 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.