Robbyn
Of English origin, meaning "bright fame" or "renowned protector".
Name Census estimates that about 896 living Americans carry the first name Robbyn. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Robbyn today is around 53 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Robbyn births was 1962 (45 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Robbyn. 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
896
~ 1 in 382,538 Americans
Peak year
1962
45 babies that year
Average age
53
years old
2019 SSA rank
#13,522
Tracked since 1947
Popularity
Robbyn: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Robbyn from the 1940s through to the 2010s, spanning 8 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1960s, with 299 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1960s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Robbyn 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 Robbyn during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Robbyns live
The SSA's state-level files cover 5 states and territories. California, Michigan, Ohio recorded the most babies named Robbyn, while New York, Texas, Ohio recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 13 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Robbyn
The name Robbyn is believed to have originated in the Middle English period, around the 13th to 15th centuries. It is a variant of the more common name Robin, which is derived from the Old French word "robin" meaning "bright fame" or "renowned." The name Robin itself is thought to have its roots in the Germanic name Hrodberht, which means "bright" and "bear."
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Robbyn can be found in the Middle English romance "Sir Orfeo," written around 1330. In this poem, Robbyn is mentioned as a character who helps the protagonist, Orfeo, in his quest to rescue his wife from the fairy king. This reference suggests that the name was in use during the 14th century, although its exact origins remain uncertain.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Robbyn. One of the earliest was Robbyn Wolcott (c. 1385-1455), an English landowner and Member of Parliament during the reign of Henry VI. Another prominent figure was Robbyn Stafford (c. 1450-1521), an English nobleman who served as the High Sheriff of Staffordshire in the early 16th century.
In the realm of literature, Robbyn Penbroke (c. 1565-1625) was an English poet and translator known for his work "The Passionate Pilgrim," which was attributed to William Shakespeare for a time. Robbyn Trevelyan (1588-1672) was an English historian and author who wrote extensively on the history of Cornwall.
Moving into more recent times, Robbyn Milford (1890-1968) was a British actress and playwright who appeared in several notable productions in the early 20th century. Her contemporary, Robbyn Sinclair (1892-1972), was a Canadian architect who designed several prominent buildings in Toronto.
It is important to note that while these examples demonstrate the historical usage of the name Robbyn, its popularity and prevalence have likely fluctuated over time, reflecting cultural and societal shifts in naming conventions and preferences.
People
Robbyn + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Robbyn as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with R
Other first names starting with R with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Robbyn: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Robbyn?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 896 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Robbyn 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 382,538 US residents.
Is Robbyn a common name?
We classify Robbyn as "Very Rare". It ranks above 89.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,066 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Robbyn most popular?
The single biggest year for Robbyn was 1962, when 45 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Robbyn is about 53 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Robbyn a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Robbyn 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.