Ryin
Masculine name of uncertain meaning and origin, possibly nature-inspired.
Name Census estimates that about 149 living Americans carry the first name Ryin. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 55.6% of registrations being female. The average person named Ryin today is around 18 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Ryin births was 2003 (16 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Ryin. 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
149
~ 1 in 2,300,365 Americans
Peak year
2003
16 babies that year
Average age
18
years old
2022 SSA rank
#13,549
Tracked since 1989
Census
Ryin in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 221 people with the first name Ryin, which placed it at #36,071 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
#36,071
National first-name rank
People counted
221
221 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
63.8% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Ryin
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Ryin is White at 63.8%. The next largest groups are Black (14.5%) and Hispanic (11.8%). 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 Ryin 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 Ryin at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White63.8% · 141
- Black or African American14.5% · 32
- Hispanic or Latino11.8% · 26
- Two or more races7.2% · 16
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.7% · 6
Gender
Gender distribution for Ryin
Ryin is one of the more evenly split names in the SSA data. Of the 151 total registrations, 67 (44.4%) were male and 84 (55.6%) were female.
Ryin as a male name
- Ranked #13,942 in 2022
- 5 male births in 2022
- Peak: 2006 (8 births)
Ryin as a female name
- Ranked #13,549 in 2019
- 7 female births in 2019
- Peak: 2003 (11 births)
2020 Census snapshot
The 2020 Census sex table shows Ryin on both sides of the split. Of the 219 people counted with this name, 109 were male (49.8%) and 110 were female (50.2%).
Popularity
Ryin: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Ryin from the 1980s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 75 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Ryin 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 Ryin 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 Ryin
The name Ryin is believed to have originated from the ancient Celtic language of Goidelic, which was spoken in parts of modern-day Ireland, Scotland, and the Isle of Man. It is thought to be derived from the Goidelic word "rían," meaning "little king" or "little leader."
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Ryin can be found in the Annals of Ulster, a chronicle of medieval Irish history, where it is mentioned in reference to a minor chieftain who lived in the 7th century. The name also appears in several ancient Irish folktales and legends, often associated with characters of noble or regal stature.
In the 11th century, a notable figure named Ryin mac Áeda was a prominent scholar and poet who served as the official bard to the King of Munster. His works, which celebrated the exploits of his royal patrons, are considered among the earliest examples of Irish courtly poetry.
During the Middle Ages, the name Ryin gained some popularity among the nobility of Scotland and northern England, where it was likely introduced by Irish settlers and Gaelic-speaking clans. One historical figure bearing this name was Ryin of Galloway, a 12th-century lord who played a significant role in the turbulent border conflicts between Scotland and England.
In the 16th century, a Ryin Fitzpatrick was a renowned Irish chieftain and military leader who fought against the English forces during the Tudor conquest of Ireland. His exploits were chronicled in contemporary accounts, and he is remembered as a symbol of Irish resistance against English colonization.
While the name Ryin has become less common in modern times, it has been carried by a few notable individuals throughout history. These include Ryin Brennan, an Irish-American labor organizer and activist in the early 20th century, and Ryin O'Sullivan, a prominent Irish historian and author who wrote extensively on the history and culture of his homeland in the mid-20th century.
People
Ryin + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Ryin 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
Ryin: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Ryin?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 149 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Ryin 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 2,300,365 US residents.
Is Ryin a common name?
We classify Ryin as "Very Rare". It ranks above 70.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 151 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Ryin most popular?
The single biggest year for Ryin was 2003, when 16 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Ryin is about 18 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Ryin in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 221 people with the name Ryin, or 0.07 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #36,071 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 Ryin 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 Ryin?
The 2020 Census sex table shows Ryin on both sides of the split. Of the 219 people counted with this name, 109 were male (49.8%) and 110 were female (50.2%). 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 Ryin?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Ryin is White at 63.8%. The next largest groups are Black (14.5%) and Hispanic (11.8%). 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 Ryin most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Ryin in the 2020 Census, accounting for 63.8% (141 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 Ryin in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Ryin a female name?
Yes, 55.6% of people registered as Ryin 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 Ryin still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Ryin 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 Ryin 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 common is the name Ryin?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.