# Rory (first name)

Source: https://namelineage.com/first-name/rory/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. US counts from the Social Security Administration; England and Wales counts from the Office for National Statistics; meaning and etymology from Wiktionary. Data updated 2026-11-11.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Usually given to | boys and girls |
| Origin | Irish |
| Meaning | “red-haired king”, “red king” |
| Pronunciation | /ˈɹɔːɹi/, 2 syllables |
| Nicknames | none recorded |
| Variant spellings | none recorded |
| US babies named this | 49,421 since 1880 |
| Boys / girls in the US | 35,841 / 13,580 (27% girls) |
| Babies in England and Wales | 23,782, 1996 to 2025 |

## Etymology

Anglicized form of Scottish Gaelic Ruairidh and Irish Ruairí (“red-haired king”), from Old Irish Ruaidrí (“red king”).

## What it means

Rory is grouped under king.

## Popularity

The last 15 years of each series. A year is missing when too few babies were given the name for the agency to publish it: five in the US, three in England and Wales.

### United States, girls

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 288 | 910 |
| 2012 | 248 | 1,024 |
| 2013 | 285 | 900 |
| 2014 | 330 | 839 |
| 2015 | 419 | 683 |
| 2016 | 470 | 637 |
| 2017 | 534 | 566 |
| 2018 | 530 | 581 |
| 2019 | 677 | 459 |
| 2020 | 675 | 458 |
| 2021 | 791 | 399 |
| 2022 | 959 | 336 |
| 2023 | 1,006 | 305 |
| 2024 | 1,105 | 287 |
| 2025 | 1,332 | 230 |

### United States, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 413 | 599 |
| 2012 | 564 | 481 |
| 2013 | 610 | 460 |
| 2014 | 748 | 417 |
| 2015 | 853 | 379 |
| 2016 | 828 | 386 |
| 2017 | 862 | 380 |
| 2018 | 884 | 369 |
| 2019 | 924 | 358 |
| 2020 | 997 | 330 |
| 2021 | 1,135 | 295 |
| 2022 | 1,229 | 280 |
| 2023 | 1,447 | 242 |
| 2024 | 1,596 | 227 |
| 2025 | 1,768 | 199 |

### England and Wales, girls

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 3 | 5,707 |
| 2011 | 3 | 5,785 |
| 2013 | 3 | 5,742 |
| 2015 | 3 | 5,730 |
| 2017 | 9 | 2,706 |
| 2018 | 14 | 1,977 |
| 2019 | 5 | 4,001 |
| 2020 | 14 | 1,939 |
| 2021 | 12 | 2,201 |
| 2022 | 21 | 1,452 |
| 2023 | 21 | 1,469 |
| 2024 | 19 | 1,603 |
| 2025 | 25 | 1,271 |

### England and Wales, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 586 | 110 |
| 2012 | 642 | 99 |
| 2013 | 652 | 96 |
| 2014 | 755 | 87 |
| 2015 | 912 | 74 |
| 2016 | 856 | 80 |
| 2017 | 1,187 | 54 |
| 2018 | 1,323 | 47 |
| 2019 | 1,357 | 46 |
| 2020 | 1,344 | 43 |
| 2021 | 1,483 | 39 |
| 2022 | 1,435 | 38 |
| 2023 | 1,468 | 33 |
| 2024 | 1,588 | 24 |
| 2025 | 1,760 | 17 |

## In other languages

- Irish: Ruairí
- Scottish Gaelic: Ruairidh, Ruaraidh
- Welsh: Rhodri

## People named Rory

- Rory Culkin, American actor
- Rory Cochrane, American actor
- Rory Kinnear, English actor (born 1978)
- Rory Stewart, British independent politician
- Rory Calhoun, American actor (1922–1999)
- Rory Kennedy, American filmmaker
- Rory Gibbs, British rower
- Rory McLeod, English Jamaican snooker player
- Rory Block, American blues guitarist and singer
- Rory Scovel, American comedian and actor
- Rory MacDonald, Canadian mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter
- Rory Sparrow, American basketball player

## How to read these numbers

A count is babies registered with that name in that year, not people alive now, so a name common a century ago can have a large total and few recent births.