Given name & surname · also German

Green

“lawn”

Green is a surname from German, ultimately from Irish.

Original GermanGrün

Meaning & origin

What it means

Green goes back to a word meaning “lawn.”

Adapted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Where it comes from

Green comes from German, and ultimately from Irish.

Adapted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0)

How it developed

In English usage, Green as a surname developed from GROEN. In English usage, Green as a surname developed from Grün.

The story

Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1880. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.

From dated birth records

Green through the years

Babies since 1880
2,033
2,033 boys · 0 girls
Most popular year
1927
48 babies
2025
0
Outside the ranked list
2021–25 vs 2016–20
—
Too few births to compare
020040060018801900192019401960198020002025Highest share 18860.0
Green in U.S. Social Security birth records, 1880–2025, per million boys born. Years with fewer than five births for a sex are not published and appear as zero. Use the arrow keys to step through years.

By the numbers

The most recent published U.S. birth count for boys is 6 in 1984. Later missing counts do not mean the name went unused. Its largest published annual count for boys was 48 in 1927. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 995 as a first name in 2020; 415,664 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.

Green’s family of names

In English usage, Green as a surname has a nickname in GREENY. In English usage, Green as a surname developed from the Dutch form GROEN. In English usage, Green as a surname has a related form in GREENE.

Walk Green’s family in the name graph

GreenGreeneGreenyGreneLevertGroenGrünGruen

Inner ring: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.

Hover or tab through the constellation to see how each name is related. Bigger dots are names more people in the U.S. share.

Around the world

Green has relatives in 3 languages. Lines run from its Irish roots to each of them.

EnglishIrish

6 related names in 3 languages. Point at a dot, or tab to the map and use the arrow keys.

Each dot marks where a language is rooted, not where people with the name live today. Bigger dots hold more names. Language locations from Glottolog (CC BY 4.0); map from Natural Earth.

Nicknames & forms 3

Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.

Across languages 4

Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.

People named Green

Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.

Similar names

If you love Green, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.

English · Old-fashioned

Edsel

“one who is plain” · “one who is noble and bright”

11Very rareEasing

>99% boys

English · Old-fashioned

Norbert

“one who shines from the north”

0Not recently recordedEasing

>99% boys

German · Old-fashioned

Eldridge

“a wise ruler”

12Very rareSteady

>99% boys

Irish · Old-fashioned

Henery

Henery is a surname from Irish.

0Not recently recorded

>99% boys

English · Old-fashioned

Malvin

“a leader” · “a friend who offers counsel”

0Not recently recordedCooling

>99% boys

English · Old-fashioned

Erwin

“a friend of the wild boar”

33RareSteady

>99% boys

German · Old-fashioned

Furman

“a ferryman”

0Not recently recorded

>99% boys

Gaelic · Old-fashioned

Oran

“surrounded by light” · “a pale-skinned man”

22RareRising

>99% boys

Sibling ideas

Names that share Green’s feel without repeating its first letter or rhyming with it.

A brother for Green

A sister for Green