Raymond

Meaning

wise protector

Goes by Ray

The story

Raymond is a giant by any measure: about 780,000 Americans across the record, more than Walter's 616,000, with 124,863 boys in the 1920s alone, a bigger single decade than even Walter's famous 120,673. The root is Germanic, counsel and protection, the wise protector, and the arc is imperial: six figures per decade through the 1920s-1950s, then the long, orderly descent, 82,000, 50,000, 42,000, and 5,600 so far this decade, every one a boy. Ray does the everyday work, as our nickname records note, and did it for Ray Charles, whose first name this was. A sitcom loved him, a boulevard of noir detectives carried him, and three generations of grandfathers answered to him: Raymond is what a century of dependability looks like written down.

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Popularity, 1890–2024

Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Raymond peaked in the 1940s and the 1950s in nearly equal measure.

When you meet Raymond

People given the name Raymond in the United States span the generations: the middle half were born anywhere from 1950 to 1989. Age is the one thing the name won't tell you.

Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.

Names that fit alongside Raymond

Roland Rowland Leonard Bernard Richard Armand

The Raymond deep dive

Written for you · $1.99 →

Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Raymond 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 Raymond fits with your family’s names and surname.

Both reports, explained →

Keep exploring

Nicknames for Raymond · Chinese American baby names

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