Given name & surname
Waylon
“from the roadside land”
Waylon is used as a given name and a surname. One English interpretation is “from the roadside land.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
One English interpretation is “from the roadside land.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is English.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1911. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Waylon through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 55,338
- 55,048 boys · 290 girls
- Most popular year
- 2025
- 5,425 babies
- 2025
- 5,425
- #56 for boys · #6,818 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +73%
- Rising fast
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 5,408 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 56 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 73.2% higher in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. It also appeared in 17 birth records for girls in 2025. In 2025, Texas had the largest reported state-level birth count for boys with this name (429). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 23,106 as a first name in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Waylon’s family of names
In English usage, Waylon has a related form in Wayland. Waylon has a related form in Wayland. Waylon has a related form in Weylin.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 15
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 1
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 1
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
People named Waylon
- Waylon JenningsAmerican country musician (1937–2002)
- Waylon FrancisCosta Rican footballerborn 1990
- Shooter JenningsAmerican musician and record producerborn 1979
- Waylon PayneAmerican musician and actorborn 1972
- Waylon ReavisAmerican vocalistborn 1978
- Waylon WoolcockSouth African mountain bikerborn 1982
Characters named Waylon: Waylon Smithers (The Simpsons).
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Waylon, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Weston
“from the western town”
>99% boys
Wesley
“from the western meadow”
98% boys · 2% girls
Hudson
“one who is adventurous; an explorer” · “the son of Hugh; from the river”
99% boys · 1% girls
Stetson
“child of one who is crowned” · “a cowboy”
99% boys · 1% girls
Winston
“of the joy stone; from the friendly town”
99% boys · 1% girls
Walker
“walker of the forests” · “one who trods the cloth”
97% boys · 3% girls
Benson
“the son of Ben”
>99% boys
Grayson
“the son of a gray-haired man”
99% boys · 1% girls