Roman
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Meaning
"Roman," from Latin Romanus; famously borne by Hong Kong singer Roman Tam, a major figure in Cantopop
The story
Roman names a connection to Rome, and its history reaches well beyond that city. It comes from Latin Romanus, "Roman," a name borne by early saints. The wider name family also appears among medieval rulers of Bulgaria, Kyiv and Moldavia. Those religious and royal records give an old place-based name a life across different lands, without making every later bearer Roman by ancestry or birthplace. In Hong Kong, singer Roman Tam supplied an altogether different association. A peacock-feather costume he wore at his farewell concert in 1996 survives in the Hong Kong Heritage Museum's account of his performing life. The feathers make a vivid later chapter for a name once encountered in saints' histories and royal genealogies. Its ancient meaning stays recognizable, while this particular Roman belongs to the history of Hong Kong's stage.
How popular is Roman around the world?
In the United States, 30,425 babies were named Roman between 2020 and 2025. In Argentina, 1,891 newborns were given the name Roman in 2024.
Roman is on the official records of the United States, Argentina, England and Wales, Scotland, New Zealand, Canada, Mexico City, New South Wales, Chile, Poland, Ireland, Montevideo, South Australia, Spain, France, Norway, Austria and Brazil.
Roman crosses languages: it is in the latest top 300 of an English-speaking birth record and of a Spanish-speaking one. The full list: English and Spanish
United States
1 in 720
In the United States, 30,425 babies were named Roman between 2020 and 2025.
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Roman peaked in the 2020s.
Births with a Social Security record. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration
Argentina
1 in 350
In Argentina, 1,891 newborns were given the name Roman in 2024.
share of that year’s name registrations
Given-name components of births in Argentina 2012–2024; national cells are lower bounds and no sex split is published. Source: RENAPER (Argentina), Dirección Nacional de Población, given names 2012-2024
England and Wales
1 in 410
In England and Wales, 1,420 boys named Roman were born in 2025, the 27th most common name among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Birth registrations in England and Wales (not the whole UK); exact spellings are counted separately, and any spelling under 3 in a year is withheld at source. Source: Office for National Statistics, baby names in England and Wales
Scotland
1 in 470
In Scotland, 98 boys named Roman were registered in 2024, the 46th most common name among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Births registered in Scotland; different spellings count separately but accents are merged at source, and any spelling under 3 in total is suppressed. Source: National Records of Scotland, babies' first names
New Zealand
1 in 930
In New Zealand, 62 boys named Roman were registered in 2025.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from New Zealand birth registrations, grouped by registration year; any name under 10 in a year is excluded at source. Shares divide by Stats NZ’s count of births registered to mothers living in New Zealand, under 1% below the registry’s own count. Source: Department of Internal Affairs (New Zealand), baby name popularity over time
Canada
1 in 1,100
In Canada, 340 boys named Roman were born in 2024, the 85th most common name among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from provincial and territorial vital statistics across Canada; any name-sex-year under 5 is excluded at source, and small Quebec counts carry a randomized adjustment made at source. Shares divide by Statistics Canada’s count of live births for the year; the 2024 count is preliminary. Source: Statistics Canada, first names at birth (table 17-10-0147-01)
Mexico City City
1 in 1,100
In Mexico City, there were 108 registrations of Roman in 2022.
share of that year’s registrations in the city
Civil-registry acts in Mexico City by registration year. Counts are lower bounds (names under 6 in a month and borough are removed at source) and count name-instances, not people; compound names are split, so “Maria Jose” counts under each part. 2023 (7 registrations through 3 Mar) is excluded as partial. Source: Registro Civil of Mexico City, open data portal, registered given names 2000-2023
New South Wales
#50 · 2025
In New South Wales, 144 boys named Roman were registered in 2025, ranked 50th in that year’s top 100 for boys.
share of that year’s top-100 registrations
New South Wales (not all of Australia) publishes only each year’s 100 most popular names per sex, so a missing year means below that top 100, not rare. Source: NSW Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages, popular baby names
Chile
1 in 1,700
In Chile, 106 boys were registered as Roman in 2021, every accent spelling counted together, most often written Román.
share of that year’s name registrations
First-name registrations with Chile’s civil registry by year of registration, 1920–2021, counted as spelling groups (Sofía, Sofia and Sofìa are one name, shown with its most-registered spelling); the registry withholds nothing, nametree keeps the groups that reached 5 registrations in some year, and shares divide by every registration of the year. Source: Servicio de Registro Civil e Identificación (Chile) via the guaguas package, first-name registrations 1920-2021
Poland
1 in 1,900
In Poland, 130 boys named Roman were born in 2025, the 117th most common name among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
First names given to children born in Poland by year of birth, 2000–2025, from the PESEL population register (Ministry of Digital Affairs); exact spellings count separately (Łukasz and Lukasz are different names), names given fewer than 5 times in a year were left off the list through 2012 and fewer than 2 times from 2013, and the register also counts children born abroad, so its yearly sums run above Poland’s live births. Shares divide by the register’s own published total for the year, never by births. Source: Ministry of Digital Affairs, PESEL register (dane.gov.pl)
Ireland
1 in 2,000
In Ireland, 27 boys named Roman were born in 2025, the 179th most common name among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Exact registered spellings from Irish vital statistics; any name under 3 in a year is withheld at source, and accented spellings (fadas) are recorded reliably only from 2018. Source: Central Statistics Office (Ireland), Irish babies' names
Montevideo City
1 in 2,1002011
In Montevideo, 12 boys named Roman were born in 2011, spelling variants counted together.
share of that year’s births on record
Births in the department of Montevideo (not all of Uruguay) by first name and year of birth, 1940–2011, from the city’s civil registry, which writes names in capitals, almost always without accents; counted as spelling groups (accent and punctuation variants merged), nothing is withheld at source, and 2012 is excluded as a partial year. Source: Servicio de Registro Civil, Intendencia de Montevideo, Partidas de Registro Civil de Montevideo (Licencia de Datos Abiertos - Uruguay); 2012 dropped as partial
South Australia
1 in 3,1002017
In South Australia, 6 boys were registered as Roman in 2017.
share of that year’s name registrations
Births registered in South Australia (not all of Australia) by first name and year of registration, 1944–2017, from the state’s Births, Deaths and Marriages registry, which publishes every name down to a single birth in capitals; a spelling its export repeats inside a year is counted once, and from 2018 only a top 100 is published, so the series ends at 2017. Source: Consumer and Business Services (South Australia), popular baby names
Spain
1 in 3,200
In Spain, 13,902 residents are named Roman, the 211th most common name among men, with a mean age of 44.6 years.
Residents of Spain on 1 January 2025. Spain publishes how old a name’s living bearers are, not a birth series, so there is no year chart. Source: INE (Spain), Censo de Población anual, 1 January 2025
France
1 in 4,300
In France, about 150 boys named Roman were born in 2025, the 338th most common name among boys that year.
share of that year’s births on record
Births in France by year of birth, from INSEE’s fichier des prénoms (1900–2025; Mayotte from 2012); exact spellings count separately (Léo and Leo are different names), any spelling under 3 in a year and sex is withheld at source, every count is rounded to the nearest 5 at source, and nametree keeps the spellings that reached 20 in some year. Shares divide by INSEE’s count of births in France from 1957, and before that by the file’s own total for the year; INSEE says the file is not complete before 1946. Source: Insee, fichier des prénoms (last updated 2026-07-16)
Norway
1 in 4,800register 2026
In Norway, 6 boys were given the name Roman in 2025.
share of the boys on the register for that year, SSB’s own figure
People who have or have had a Norwegian ID number, emigrants left out, from Statistics Norway’s name statistics (release of January 2026): by year of birth for 1945–2020 (everyone born that year who was ever registered in Norway, including people who registered later and people who have since died) and by year of naming from 2021; only first names carried by 200 or more living people are listed, counts under 4 are withheld, and SSB merges spellings that differ only by letters outside the Norwegian alphabet. The shares are SSB’s own, of the people of that sex and year in that count; the 2025 figure counts the children named that year, and no year is a count of births. Source: Statistics Norway (SSB), table 10467 (updated 2026-01-28)
Austria
1 in 5,100
In Austria, 15 boys named Roman were born in 2025, the 360th most common name among boys that year, spellings that differ only by special characters counted together.
share of that year’s births on record
Live births in Austria by year of birth, 1984–2025, from Statistik Austria’s first-name statistics; spellings that differ only by special characters are counted together (umlauts stay apart), every name down to a single birth is published, and the count covers babies with Austrian citizenship only until 2009, every baby from 2010, and from 2015 also births abroad to mothers living in Austria. Shares divide by Statistik Austria’s count of live births from 2010, and before that by the file’s own total for the year. Source: Statistik Austria - data.statistik.gv.at (OGDEXT_VORNAMEN_1, updated 2026-07-09)
Brazil
1 in 330,000
At the 2022 census, 512 people in Brazil were named Roman, ranked 13,145th, with a median age of 32.
Among people named Roman living in Brazil at the 2022 census, more were born in the 1980s than in any other decade.
people alive at the 2022 census, by decade of birth
The census also counted 38 born between 2020 and August 2022, too recent a span to chart. People alive and resident in Brazil at the 2022 census, a living-population count, not births; names under 20 are withheld at source. Source: IBGE, Censo Demográfico 2022
Not on the record in Puerto Rico: that registry withholds small counts, so rare uses may sit below its floor.
When you meet Roman
Most people given the name Roman in the United States are children or teenagers today. The name belongs to this generation.
Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.
Where Roman travels
Italian American · citizen of Rome; a bold modern favorite embraced by Italian-American families
Russian · from Rome, citizen of Rome
Polish · citizen of Rome; a Polish midcentury classic now riding a separate American revival
Keep exploring
Names like Roman · Names that go with Roman · Middle names for Roman · Russian baby names · Italian American baby names · Ukrainian baby names · Cantonese and Hong Kong baby names · Polish baby names · Nickname-proof names
The Roman deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Roman 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 Roman fits with your family’s names and surname.
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