Robertson
A masculine name derived from the Old English elements "Rod" and "bert", meaning "bright fame" or "bright renown".
Name Census estimates that about 417 living Americans carry the first name Robertson. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Robertson today is around 41 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Robertson births was 1964 (16 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Robertson. 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
417
~ 1 in 821,953 Americans
Peak year
1964
16 babies that year
Average age
41
years old
2022 SSA rank
#13,913
Tracked since 1916
Popularity
Robertson: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Robertson from the 1910s through to the 2020s, spanning 12 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1980s, with 88 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1980s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Robertson 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 Robertson 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 Robertson
The name Robertson is an English surname that derives from the Old English words "Rod" meaning "bright" and "Bert" meaning "renowned." It was originally a descriptive nickname given to someone with a bright complexion or personality. The name dates back to the 11th century and was prominent among the Anglo-Saxons in England.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Robertson can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a survey of landowners in England commissioned by William the Conqueror. The name appeared as "Rodbert" in this historical record.
In the 12th century, the name Robertson gained popularity in Scotland, where it was often spelled "Robertsoun" or "Roberton." One notable figure from this era was William Robertsoun, a Scottish priest and philosopher who lived from 1165 to 1232.
During the Middle Ages, the name Robertson was associated with several prominent families and individuals. In the 14th century, Sir John Robertson was a Scottish knight who fought alongside Robert the Bruce in the Scottish Wars of Independence.
As the name spread across Europe, it appeared in various forms. In Germany, it was known as "Robertsen," while in France, it was spelled "Robertsonne." One famous bearer of the name was Johann Robertsen, a German astronomer who lived from 1569 to 1638 and made significant contributions to the study of comets.
In the 17th century, the name Robertson gained recognition in England through figures such as Thomas Robertson, a Scottish philosopher and historian who lived from 1629 to 1714. He was known for his works on the history of Scotland and the philosophy of mind.
Another notable person with the name Robertson was William Robertson, a Scottish historian and principal of the University of Edinburgh, who lived from 1721 to 1793. He was renowned for his acclaimed work, "The History of America," which explored the discovery and conquest of the Americas.
In the 19th century, the name Robertson continued to be prominent in various fields. One example is Andrew Robertson, a Scottish-American golfer who lived from 1857 to 1909 and won several prestigious tournaments, including the U.S. Open in 1887.
People
Robertson + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Robertson 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
Robertson: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Robertson?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 417 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Robertson 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 821,953 US residents.
Is Robertson a common name?
We classify Robertson as "Very Rare". It ranks above 82.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 516 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Robertson most popular?
The single biggest year for Robertson was 1964, when 16 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Robertson is about 41 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Robertson a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Robertson 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.