Given name & surname
Rod
“a famous ruler”
In English use, Rod carries the interpretation “a famous ruler.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
In English use, Rod carries the interpretation “a famous ruler.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is English.
How it developed
In English use, Rod is used as a shortened form of Roderick. In English use, Rod is used as a shortened form of Rodney.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1910. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin. In English use, Rod is a diminutive of Roderick. The history of Roderick gives this family its wider story. Walter Scott’s The Vision of Don Roderick helped revive the name in the nineteenth century, using it for the Spanish king Rodrigo. Roderick has also served as an English rendering of Gaelic Ruairidh and Welsh Rhydderch, without making those names etymologically identical.
Combines direct and name-family evidence
Rod through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 8,744
- 8,744 boys · 0 girls
- Most popular year
- 1960
- 496 babies
- 2025
- 0
- Outside the ranked list
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- —
- Too few births to compare
By the numbers
The most recent published U.S. birth count for boys is 7 in 2023. Later missing counts do not mean the name went unused. Its largest published annual count for boys was 496 in 1960. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 12,112 as a first name in 2020; 1,466 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.
Rod’s family of names
Rod is a short form of Rodney. Rod is a form of Roderick. In English usage, Rod is a nickname for Rodney.
Inner ring: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Rod has relatives in 4 languages. Lines run from its English roots to each of them.
Nicknames & forms 10
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
- Rodneyfull form · English
- Roderickfull form · English
- Roddyvariant
- Roddeyvariant
- Roddievariant
- Roddvariant
- Rodrygfull form · Polish
- Roddeavariant
Show 2 moreShow fewer
Across languages 4
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
People named Rod
- Rod StewartEnglish singer and songwriter (born 1945)
- Rod SteigerAmerican actor (1925–2002)
- Rod LaverAustralian tennis playerborn 1938
- Rod TaylorAustralian actor (1930-2015)
- Rod Blagojevich40th governor of Illinois from 2003 to 2009born 1956
- Rod FanniFrench footballer (born 1981)
- Rod RoddyAmerican radio and television announcer (1937-2003)
- Rod MilburnAmerican athlete (1950–1997)
- Rod Brind'AmourCanadian ice hockey player and coachborn 1970
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Appears in
Similar names
If you love Rod, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Cerdic
“a king”
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“a famous wolf”
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Rodell
“a famous ruler”
99% boys · 1% girls
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“the son of Roy”
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Kingswood
“king”
—
Lutz
Lutz is used as a given name and a surname. Lutz is connected with Ludwig.
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“a king”
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“under the king's rule”
>99% boys