Gawain
Gawain, spelled many ways, is one of the Knights of the Round Table in the Arthurian legendary cycle. The prototype of Gawain appears under the name Gwalchmei in the earliest Welsh sources.
Meaning & Origin of Gawain
What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.
Gawain, spelled many ways, is one of the Knights of the Round Table in the Arthurian legendary cycle. The prototype of Gawain appears under the name Gwalchmei in the earliest Welsh sources.
Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →
The Story of Gawain
The earliest SSA record of Gawain as a baby boy name dates back to 1948, when 5 babies received it. 1974 was its biggest year on record, with 10 newborns named Gawain — #3,320 in the national rankings. About 31% of every Gawain on record arrived during the 1970s, its defining decade. Gawain last appeared in the published SSA data in 2023, with 6 recorded births — it has not charted nationally since. All told, over 85 Americans have carried the name since 1880, from the 1940s to the 2020s.
Popularity Over Time
Popularity by State
Names that sound like Gawain
Phonetically similar names — useful when Gawain is the vibe but a different syllable count or letter feel might suit better. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.
Source: Datamuse . Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated.
Frequently Asked Questions about Gawain
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About the name Gawain
Gawain is a boy baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1948 and has accumulated 85 births in the dataset. Gawain's peak popularity came in 1974 when it ranked #3,320. Use the chart and map above to compare Gawain's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.
Continue exploring
- Top names of 1974 →
- Names of the 1970s →
- Names starting with "G" →
- Browse all boy names →
- Top names of 2026 →
Data sources
- Birth statistics (counts, ranks, years 1880–2026) — U.S. Social Security Administration . Predictions for years not yet released by SSA are computed by Peek a Name from historical trends; we update with official data as soon as it ships.
- Etymology, cultural origins, and related forms — Behind the Name (used under their public API terms).
- Meaning prose and editorial summary — Wikipedia article extracts, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 .
- Predicted nationality distribution — Nationalize.io .
- Phonetically similar names — Datamuse .
Peek a Name aggregates and presents the above data for informational purposes. Statistical predictions and external attributions are clearly labelled where shown; we make no guarantee of accuracy beyond what each source provides.