Meaning & origin
What it means
Bryan possibly goes back to English Bryan, meaning “hill.”
Adapted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Where it comes from
Bryan is a variant of Brian. Brian has been associated with Celtic and Irish naming traditions.
Explained through its name family
How it developed
Possibly from English Bryan, from Irish Brian.
Adapted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0)
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1883. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Bryan through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 391,306
- 389,589 boys · 1,717 girls
- Most popular year
- 1985
- 8,788 babies
- 2025
- 1,005
- #336 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −34%
- Easing
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 1,005 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 336 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 33.6% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 8,717 in 1985. In 2025, California had the largest reported state-level birth count for boys with this name (136). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 327,372 as a first name in 2020; 54,685 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Bryan’s family of names
In English usage, Bryan has an alternative spelling in Brian. Bryan has a related form in Brian. In English usage, Bryan has a conventional equivalent in the Azerbaijani form BRAYAN.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Bryan has relatives in 6 languages.
7 related names in 6 languages. Point at a dot, or tab to the map and use the arrow keys.
Nicknames & forms 5
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 3
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 9
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
- BrayanAzerbaijani
- Brynequivalent
- Bryannequivalent
- Brinequivalent
- Брайанequivalent
- BrajanPolish
- ΜπράιανGreek
- براينArabic
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People named Bryan
- Bryan AdamsCanadian singer-songwriter and musician (born 1959)
- Bryan CranstonAmerican actor (born 1956)
- Bryan RuizCosta Rican footballerborn 1985
- Bryan SingerAmerican film director and producerborn 1965
- Bryan FerryBritish singer (born 1945)
- Bryan RobsonEnglish footballer and manager (born 1957)
- Bryan CristanteItalian association football playerborn 1995
- Bryan MbeumoCameroonian-French footballer (born 1999)
- Skeet UlrichAmerican actor (born 1970)
Characters named Bryan: Bryan Fury (Tekken).
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Bryan, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Ryan
“the little ruler; little king”
90% boys · 10% girls
Bryant
Bryant is a masculine given name from Irish.
>99% boys
Brett
“woman of Britain or Brittany” · “a man from Britain or Brittany”
94% boys · 6% girls
Brandon
“from the broom or gorse hill”
>99% boys
Brenton
“from the hill”
>99% boys
Bradley
“from the broad field” · “from the wide meadow”
96% boys · 4% girls
Dustin
“from the dusty area” · “a courageous warrior”
>99% boys
Sean
“God is gracious”
>99% boys