Morgan
Meaning
sea circle, sea-born
The story
Morgan carries more than one Welsh history. As a masculine name it descends from Old Welsh forms associated with the early British kingdom of Morgannwg; as a surname it later became a given name, and the similar Arthurian enchantress Morgan le Fay helped the sound feel feminine in English. The exact ancient elements are debated, so poetic claims such as sea-born should be treated as tradition rather than settled fact. In US records Morgan is a modern crossover story. It first leaves a trace in the 1980s, rises sharply in the 1990s, peaks in the 2000s, and then eases through the 2010s and 2020s. The rise was especially strong for girls, while boys never disappeared. Morgan is now genuinely unisex, a Welsh-rooted name whose modern American identity was shaped less by one bearer than by a generation choosing it in both directions.
Popularity, 1890–2024
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Morgan peaked in the 2000s.
See popularity in Brazil
Popularity in Brazil
325 people · the #18,003 first name in Brazil · about 1 in 500,000 · median age 33
Among people named Morgan living in Brazil at the 2022 census, more were born in the 1980s than in any other decade.
Source: IBGE, Censo Demográfico 2022
When you meet Morgan
Most people given the name Morgan in the United States were born between 1990 and 2009. The Morgan you meet today is most often in their 20s or 30s.
Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.
The Morgan deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Morgan truly comes from, how it traveled, and what a century of records reveals. If you have grown a tree on nametree, it also considers how Morgan fits with your family’s names and surname.
Keep exploring
Does Morgan fit YOUR family?
nametree reads your family’s names and finds the ones that belong. Free, private, no ads.
Add Morgan to your family’s tree →