Waelyn
A feminine name of Welsh origin meaning "young trailblazer".
Name Census estimates that about 98 living Americans carry the first name Waelyn. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 61.6% of registrations being male. The average person named Waelyn today is around 5 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Waelyn births was 2024 (20 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Waelyn. 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.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Waelyn. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
98
~ 1 in 3,497,493 Americans
Peak year
2024
20 babies that year
Average age
5
years old
2024 SSA rank
#7,684
Tracked since 2018
Gender
Gender distribution for Waelyn
Waelyn is one of the more evenly split names in the SSA data. Of the 99 total registrations, 61 (61.6%) were male and 38 (38.4%) were female.
Waelyn as a male name
- Ranked #7,684 in 2024
- 11 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2023 (14 births)
Waelyn as a female name
- Ranked #11,016 in 2024
- 9 female births in 2024
- Peak: 2021 (9 births)
Popularity
Waelyn: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Waelyn from the 2010s through to the 2020s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2020s, with 78 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
Waelyn 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 Waelyn 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 Waelyn
The given name Waelyn traces its roots to the ancient Celtic cultures of the British Isles, particularly in Wales and parts of northern England. It is derived from the Old Welsh words "gwaedd" meaning "cry" or "call" and "llin" meaning "pool" or "lake." The name was initially used to refer to individuals who lived near bodies of water or worked as fishermen.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Waelyn can be found in the Welsh Triads, a collection of traditional narratives and wisdom from the 9th century. It is mentioned as the name of a minor character, a fisherman from the region of Gwynedd. This suggests that the name was in use among the Welsh people as early as the medieval period.
In the 12th century, a Waelyn ap Rhys is listed as a landowner and local chieftain in the Glamorgan area of southern Wales. This historical figure may have helped popularize the name among the Welsh nobility during the Middle Ages.
The name Waelyn appears sporadically in various historical records throughout the centuries, often associated with individuals from Wales or of Welsh descent. Notable examples include Waelyn Goch, a 14th-century Welsh soldier who fought in the Hundred Years' War, and Waelyn Ddu, a 16th-century bard and poet from Anglesey.
During the Renaissance period, a prominent figure named Waelyn Vaughan (c. 1510-1589) was a renowned scholar and translator who played a significant role in preserving and promoting Welsh literature and language. His contributions helped maintain the cultural significance of the name Waelyn.
In more recent times, the name Waelyn has been less common but still holds cultural significance in Wales and among Welsh diaspora communities around the world. One noteworthy individual was Waelyn Williams (1920-2003), a Welsh poet and writer who gained recognition for his works exploring the themes of identity and belonging.
While the name Waelyn has ancient roots and a rich history within Welsh culture, it has remained relatively uncommon compared to other traditional Welsh names. Nevertheless, its enduring presence serves as a testament to the enduring traditions and linguistic heritage of the Welsh people.
People
Waelyn + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Waelyn as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with W
Other first names starting with W with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Waelyn: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Waelyn?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 98 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Waelyn 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 3,497,493 US residents.
Is Waelyn a common name?
We classify Waelyn as "Very Rare". It ranks above 64.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 99 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Waelyn most popular?
The single biggest year for Waelyn was 2024, when 20 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Waelyn is about 5 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Waelyn a male name?
Yes, 61.6% of people registered as Waelyn 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.