Fun Facts About the Name Ragan
- More than 2 thousand babies named Ragan: U.S. records list 2,260 babies given the name Ragan from 1880 through 2025. Even 394 boys received the name Ragan - about 1 boy for every 5 girls.
What Does the Name Ragan Mean?
Ragan is used mostly in English and is usually a variant spelling of the Irish name Reagan. Reagan comes from Irish Gaelic Ó Riagáin, which means "descendant of Riagán." Riagán is an older personal name built with the diminutive ending -án. The element in front of that ending is commonly connected with Irish rí, "king," giving the customary sense "little king." The older personal name is not fully explained, so the "king" element is best treated as the usual interpretation rather than a settled fact.
Ragan also appears as a surname outside Ireland, and those lines are of uncertain origin. A shared look with the Irish name is not evidence of a shared source. Where Ragan is used today as a first name, it generally follows the Irish-derived surname.
Ragan Name History & Origins
Ragan is chiefly an anglicized spelling of the Irish surname Ó Riagáin, "descendant of Riagán." Irish surnames formed with the prefix Ó, marking descent from a named ancestor, became fixed in the Middle Ages. Ó Riagáin belonged to more than one family, including a sept in the Irish midlands. As English replaced Irish in records and daily speech, the same name was written in several ways - Reagan, Regan, O'Reagan, and Ragan among them. These spellings usually reflect different attempts to render the Irish sounds in English rather than separate names.
Families outside Ireland who use the surname Ragan are not all of Irish descent, and not every branch can be traced with confidence. The surname was carried by migrants to Britain and North America, and Irish and non-Irish lines are sometimes difficult to tell apart in the records.
Ragan entered use as a first name in the English-speaking world through the broad practice of giving a child a family surname as a given name, a custom well established in the United States by the nineteenth century. Ragan and Reagan were drawn into this pattern as first names, with Ragan remaining the less common spelling of the two.
How Popular is the Name Ragan?
Ragan has historically been an exceptionally rare given name in the United States, remaining well outside the national mainstream. It saw its highest recorded annual births in 1998. Its best rank was #1,951 in 1998.
U.S. name popularity from 1880-2025, based on SSA data. Rank shows how the name compares with other names - lower numbers mean greater popularity. Births shows how many babies received the name each year.
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #14,530 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 2024 | #13,101 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2023 | #13,146 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2022 | #8,409 | 13 | 0.0008% |
| 2021 | #7,549 | 15 | 0.0009% |
| 2020 | #13,142 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2019 | #10,304 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 2018 | #7,342 | 16 | 0.0009% |
| 2017 | #7,359 | 16 | 0.0009% |
| 2016 | #7,156 | 17 | 0.0010% |
| 2015 | #7,528 | 16 | 0.0009% |
| 2014 | #7,568 | 16 | 0.0009% |
| 2013 | #4,729 | 30 | 0.0017% |
| 2012 | #6,814 | 19 | 0.0011% |
| 2011 | #5,686 | 24 | 0.0014% |
| 2010 | #5,375 | 26 | 0.0015% |
| 2009 | #3,787 | 42 | 0.0023% |
| 2008 | #3,306 | 51 | 0.0027% |
| 2007 | #2,918 | 62 | 0.0032% |
| 2006 | #3,406 | 48 | 0.0025% |
| 2005 | #2,997 | 54 | 0.0029% |
| 2004 | #2,955 | 54 | 0.0029% |
| 2003 | #2,339 | 72 | 0.0039% |
| 2002 | #2,461 | 65 | 0.0036% |
| 2001 | #2,403 | 66 | 0.0037% |
| 2000 | #2,186 | 73 | 0.0040% |
| 1999 | #2,149 | 71 | 0.0040% |
| 1998 | #1,951 | 78 | 0.0044% |
| 1997 | #2,300 | 59 | 0.0034% |
| 1996 | #2,473 | 52 | 0.0030% |
| 1995 | #2,719 | 45 | 0.0026% |
| 1994 | #2,921 | 41 | 0.0023% |
| 1993 | #3,752 | 29 | 0.0016% |
| 1992 | #3,846 | 28 | 0.0015% |
| 1991 | #3,516 | 31 | 0.0017% |
| 1990 | #3,690 | 29 | 0.0015% |
| 1989 | #5,217 | 17 | 0.0009% |
| 1988 | #6,166 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 1987 | #4,818 | 17 | 0.0010% |
| 1986 | #6,055 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 1985 | #4,596 | 17 | 0.0010% |
| 1984 | #3,122 | 28 | 0.0017% |
| 1983 | #4,827 | 15 | 0.0009% |
| 1982 | #4,884 | 15 | 0.0009% |
| 1981 | #2,762 | 33 | 0.0020% |
| 1980 | #2,004 | 53 | 0.0032% |
| 1979 | #2,839 | 31 | 0.0019% |
| 1978 | #2,377 | 38 | 0.0025% |
| 1977 | #2,115 | 45 | 0.0029% |
| 1976 | #1,987 | 45 | 0.0031% |
| 1975 | #1,977 | 45 | 0.0031% |
| 1974 | #2,378 | 33 | 0.0022% |
| 1973 | #5,928 | 9 | 0.0006% |
| 1972 | #9,232 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1970 | #7,747 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1969 | #6,424 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1968 | #6,083 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1967 | #3,994 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 1966 | #3,013 | 18 | 0.0011% |
| 1965 | #3,686 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 1964 | #2,142 | 32 | 0.0017% |
| 1963 | #7,369 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | #10,532 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2019 | #13,662 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2017 | #11,866 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 2014 | #9,410 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 2012 | #11,925 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 2011 | #8,609 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 2010 | #8,630 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 2009 | #8,150 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 2007 | #6,976 | 12 | 0.0006% |
| 2006 | #13,545 | 5 | 0.0002% |
| 2005 | #12,904 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2004 | #12,778 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2003 | #7,114 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 2001 | #9,001 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2000 | #8,914 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1999 | #7,701 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1998 | #5,743 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 1997 | #7,123 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1996 | #4,820 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 1995 | #9,959 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1994 | #5,780 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 1993 | #6,678 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1992 | #8,216 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1991 | #8,003 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1990 | #7,874 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1988 | #5,119 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1985 | #7,335 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1984 | #4,467 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1983 | #5,341 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1982 | #7,116 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1980 | #4,841 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1979 | #3,513 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 1978 | #3,036 | 14 | 0.0009% |
| 1977 | #3,333 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 1976 | #3,424 | 11 | 0.0007% |
| 1975 | #3,038 | 13 | 0.0008% |
| 1974 | #4,092 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1972 | #4,334 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1968 | #4,027 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1967 | #3,468 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1966 | #3,183 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1965 | #2,242 | 14 | 0.0008% |
| 1964 | #4,473 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1963 | #2,282 | 14 | 0.0007% |
| 1962 | #2,803 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 1960 | #3,582 | 7 | 0.0003% |
| 1954 | #4,242 | 5 | 0.0002% |
| 1923 | #4,152 | 6 | 0.0005% |
Name popularity over more than a century, based on Social Security Administration data. Gaps in the chart indicate years when the name does not appear in the published records.
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How the Name Ragan Shapes Your Personality and Life?
You are a law unto itself. Your tendency is to finish whatever you start. You are tolerant and like to help humanity. You are very active. You are generally warmhearted and gives freely of your time, energy, and sympathetic understanding. You have tolerance and acceptance of the frailties of others. Universal and humanitarian in outlook. This is very compassionate name. You are bold, independent, inquisitive and interested in research. You know what you want and why you want it.
You are seeking freedom, opportunities to enjoy life: to make love, to go places and to do things. You are very adventurous and willing to take risk to achieve your objectives. New ways and new experiences can't satisfy your restless nature. One adventure leads you to another. You are honest and fair, because you know that this is the only way to receive justice and honesty from other people. But your personal growth is vital for you, and it is difficult to be tied down by rules and obligations. Your restless spirit might best controlled by choosing the field of work that meet your demand for action and adventure.
✦ Ragan's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Ragan's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.