River

What River means

From the word “river”

From river.

Source: Wiktionary, “River” (revision 92183978), CC BY-SA 4.0. Quoted from the etymology; we don’t write our own.

How popular is River?

US: Rising: up from #243 in 2015. England & Wales: Rising: up from #393 in 2015.

Biggest US share so far: 2022, when 3,500 boys got the name (#105 that year). First in the US records in 1971.

How common

• About 1 in 544 baby boys in the US in 2025
• About 1 in 565 baby boys in England and Wales in 2025
• About 1 in 578 baby boys in Scotland in 2025

“1 in N” divides by all listed births for that sex. The US list leaves out names given to fewer than 5 babies, and the UK lists leave out names given to 2 or fewer, so the real figure is a little rarer than shown.

Where in the US

Most popular in VT (5.78 per 1,000 boys), WV (5.2 per 1,000 boys), HI (4.8 per 1,000 boys) in 2025.

SSA state data, 2025. Share of all listed boys born in each state.

US vs UK

River is #111 in the US and #110 in England & Wales (2025).

Same sex as this page (boys). SSA (US), ONS (England and Wales), NRS (Scotland).

Boy or girl?

In 2025, 69.1% of US babies named River were boys.

Counts below the publishing threshold (US 5, UK 3) are not included.

Other spellings

Other spellings parents chose in 2025

• Ryver73 US · 10 E&W

Names that sound the same and differ by a letter or two, with baby counts for the same sex. US and E&W counts.

If you like River

Boys

• Zayn#251“beauty”^*
• Legend#193Editor’s note Climbing fast in the US: #391 in 2015, #193 in 2025
• Kairo#226Editor’s note First shows up in US records in 1995, with 6 babies
• Mateo#8Same root as Matthew, meaning “gift of the Lord”^*
• Crew#256“weir”^*
• Liam#1Form of William, meaning “will + helmet”^*

For a sister

• Aspen#266Editor’s note Used for both: 82% of US babies named Aspen in 2025 were girls
• Ivy#39From the word “ivy”^*
• Josie#82Editor’s note Climbing fast in the US: #250 in 2015, #82 in 2025
• Noa#226Hawaiian, meaning “commoner, free man”^*
• Aitana#211Editor’s note Climbing fast in the US: #915 in 2015, #211 in 2025
• Juniper#100Editor’s note Climbing fast in the US: #427 in 2015, #100 in 2025

Picked from the US top 1,000 in 2025: names Wiktionary also files under where there are enough, topped up with common names whose US popularity since 1990 rose and fell most like River’s. Place names are only included if they are in the top 300. Rank is US 2025.