Fun Facts About the Name Waylon
- Gaining ground: Waylon remained in the U.S. top 100 for 5 consecutive years, from 2021 through 2025. In 2025, it gained 9 ranking positions compared with the previous year.
- More than 55 thousand babies named Waylon: U.S. records list 55,306 babies given the name Waylon from 1880 through 2025. Even 290 girls received the name Waylon - about 1 girl for every 190 boys.
What Does the Name Waylon Mean?
Waylon is an English name usually explained as a variant of Wayland. Both are formed from Old English elements: weg, meaning "way" or "road," and land, meaning "land." Read literally, the name means something like "land by the road" or "wayside land," a description that suits a name that also existed as a surname. A separate strand of tradition attaches the name to Wayland the Smith, a craftsman of Germanic legend (Old English Wēland, Old Norse Völundr). The deeper origin of that older legendary name is uncertain and is not necessarily the same as the "way" + "land" explanation commonly given for the modern name.
Waylon Name History & Origins
Wayland is the older form. It appears in medieval English tradition as the name of a legendary smith, named in the Old English poem Deor and depicted on the Franks Casket, an early eighth-century Anglo-Saxon carved box. The name also circulated as an ordinary personal name in England and later as a surname. Waylon is a spelling variant that came to be used as a given name, chiefly in the United States. The country singer Waylon Jennings (1937 - 2002) is one widely recognized bearer of the name.
How Popular is the Name Waylon?
Waylon recorded its highest annual U.S. birth count in 2025. Waylon entered the top 100 U.S. boy names in 2021.
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 | #6,818 | 17 | 0.0011% |
| 2024 | #5,000 | 27 | 0.0017% |
| 2023 | #4,105 | 36 | 0.0022% |
| 2022 | #4,191 | 35 | 0.0021% |
| 2021 | #4,601 | 30 | 0.0018% |
| 2020 | #4,441 | 31 | 0.0019% |
| 2019 | #4,898 | 28 | 0.0017% |
| 2018 | #7,080 | 17 | 0.0010% |
| 2017 | #6,789 | 18 | 0.0010% |
| 2016 | #5,780 | 23 | 0.0013% |
| 2015 | #9,453 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 2014 | #13,005 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 2013 | #13,084 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #56 | 5,408 | 0.3166% |
| 2024 | #65 | 4,878 | 0.2844% |
| 2023 | #62 | 4,894 | 0.2864% |
| 2022 | #66 | 4,918 | 0.2819% |
| 2021 | #69 | 4,657 | 0.2664% |
| 2020 | #103 | 3,586 | 0.2079% |
| 2019 | #113 | 3,438 | 0.1917% |
| 2018 | #142 | 2,789 | 0.1536% |
| 2017 | #162 | 2,427 | 0.1312% |
| 2016 | #196 | 2,059 | 0.1085% |
| 2015 | #222 | 1,761 | 0.0919% |
| 2014 | #251 | 1,500 | 0.0781% |
| 2013 | #290 | 1,201 | 0.0635% |
| 2012 | #324 | 972 | 0.0512% |
| 2011 | #374 | 801 | 0.0422% |
| 2010 | #421 | 657 | 0.0342% |
| 2009 | #480 | 571 | 0.0288% |
| 2008 | #547 | 480 | 0.0235% |
| 2007 | #520 | 502 | 0.0242% |
| 2006 | #544 | 466 | 0.0227% |
| 2005 | #615 | 365 | 0.0183% |
| 2004 | #689 | 290 | 0.0146% |
| 2003 | #842 | 207 | 0.0105% |
| 2002 | #759 | 228 | 0.0117% |
| 2001 | #1,276 | 105 | 0.0054% |
| 2000 | #1,082 | 131 | 0.0067% |
| 1999 | #1,155 | 114 | 0.0059% |
| 1998 | #1,144 | 110 | 0.0058% |
| 1997 | #978 | 134 | 0.0071% |
| 1996 | #998 | 126 | 0.0067% |
| 1995 | #1,088 | 109 | 0.0057% |
| 1994 | #971 | 130 | 0.0067% |
| 1993 | #1,070 | 109 | 0.0056% |
| 1992 | #913 | 135 | 0.0068% |
| 1991 | #953 | 126 | 0.0062% |
| 1990 | #994 | 113 | 0.0055% |
| 1989 | #937 | 119 | 0.0059% |
| 1988 | #882 | 117 | 0.0061% |
| 1987 | #809 | 133 | 0.0071% |
| 1986 | #805 | 128 | 0.0070% |
| 1985 | #656 | 180 | 0.0097% |
| 1984 | #613 | 193 | 0.0107% |
| 1983 | #631 | 184 | 0.0103% |
| 1982 | #608 | 200 | 0.0110% |
| 1981 | #479 | 304 | 0.0170% |
| 1980 | #419 | 387 | 0.0217% |
| 1979 | #465 | 312 | 0.0181% |
| 1978 | #507 | 258 | 0.0157% |
| 1977 | #525 | 253 | 0.0154% |
| 1976 | #650 | 161 | 0.0103% |
| 1975 | #771 | 116 | 0.0074% |
| 1974 | #856 | 88 | 0.0056% |
| 1973 | #795 | 100 | 0.0064% |
| 1972 | #872 | 86 | 0.0053% |
| 1971 | #775 | 111 | 0.0063% |
| 1970 | #758 | 119 | 0.0064% |
| 1969 | #781 | 98 | 0.0055% |
| 1968 | #828 | 79 | 0.0045% |
| 1967 | #1,002 | 53 | 0.0030% |
| 1966 | #1,578 | 25 | 0.0014% |
| 1965 | #2,612 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 1964 | #2,407 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 1963 | #3,638 | 7 | 0.0003% |
| 1962 | #2,032 | 17 | 0.0008% |
| 1961 | #3,346 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1960 | #3,072 | 9 | 0.0004% |
| 1959 | #3,281 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1958 | #1,641 | 24 | 0.0011% |
| 1957 | #3,251 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1956 | #1,943 | 18 | 0.0009% |
| 1955 | #2,554 | 11 | 0.0005% |
| 1954 | #2,440 | 12 | 0.0006% |
| 1953 | #2,097 | 15 | 0.0008% |
| 1952 | #1,856 | 18 | 0.0009% |
| 1951 | #1,969 | 16 | 0.0008% |
| 1950 | #2,434 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 1949 | #2,120 | 14 | 0.0008% |
| 1948 | #1,607 | 22 | 0.0013% |
| 1947 | #1,847 | 18 | 0.0010% |
| 1946 | #1,689 | 19 | 0.0012% |
| 1945 | #1,849 | 15 | 0.0011% |
| 1944 | #1,626 | 19 | 0.0014% |
| 1943 | #1,693 | 19 | 0.0013% |
| 1942 | #1,795 | 17 | 0.0012% |
| 1941 | #1,585 | 20 | 0.0016% |
| 1940 | #1,678 | 18 | 0.0016% |
| 1939 | #2,603 | 9 | 0.0008% |
| 1938 | #1,246 | 29 | 0.0026% |
| 1937 | #1,370 | 25 | 0.0023% |
| 1936 | #1,585 | 19 | 0.0018% |
| 1935 | #1,706 | 18 | 0.0017% |
| 1934 | #1,496 | 22 | 0.0021% |
| 1933 | #1,451 | 23 | 0.0023% |
| 1932 | #2,840 | 9 | 0.0009% |
| 1931 | #1,767 | 18 | 0.0017% |
| 1930 | #2,077 | 15 | 0.0014% |
| 1929 | #2,585 | 11 | 0.0010% |
| 1928 | #1,819 | 19 | 0.0017% |
| 1927 | #3,436 | 8 | 0.0007% |
| 1926 | #2,300 | 14 | 0.0013% |
| 1925 | #3,145 | 9 | 0.0008% |
| 1924 | #2,344 | 14 | 0.0012% |
| 1923 | #3,458 | 8 | 0.0007% |
| 1922 | #4,294 | 6 | 0.0006% |
| 1921 | #3,205 | 9 | 0.0008% |
| 1920 | #3,198 | 9 | 0.0008% |
| 1919 | #4,786 | 5 | 0.0005% |
| 1918 | #2,694 | 11 | 0.0011% |
| 1916 | #3,498 | 7 | 0.0008% |
| 1915 | #3,813 | 6 | 0.0007% |
| 1911 | #1,988 | 5 | 0.0022% |
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.
Explore Name Lists Featuring Waylon
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How the Name Waylon Shapes Your Personality and Life?
To express itself, you must follow the divine law of love. You have great persistence and hate to give up. You are a good mixer, charming, magnetic and intuitive. The spirituality is the key to success. You are bold, independent, inquisitive and interested in research. You know what you want and why you want it.
You desire to inspire and lead, to control other's affairs. You are giving, courageous and bold, action oriented,energetic and strong willed. You want to make a difference in the world, and this attitude often attracts you to cultural interests, politics, social issues, and the cultivation of your creative talents.
✦ Waylon's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Waylon's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.