Trajan
Trajan was a Roman emperor from AD 98 to 117, remembered as the second of the Five Good Emperors of the Nerva–Antonine dynasty. He was a philanthropic ruler and a successful soldier-emperor who presided over one of the greatest military expansions in Roman history, during which, by the time of his death, the Roman Empire reached its maximum territorial extent.
Meaning & Origin of Trajan
What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.
Trajan was a Roman emperor from AD 98 to 117, remembered as the second of the Five Good Emperors of the Nerva–Antonine dynasty. He was a philanthropic ruler and a successful soldier-emperor who presided over one of the greatest military expansions in Roman history, during which, by the time of his death, the Roman Empire reached its maximum territorial extent.
Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →
The Story of Trajan
Trajan first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a baby boy name in 1994, with 14 babies given the name that year. Its peak popularity came in 1999, when 141 Trajans were born — ranking #996 that year. As of 2026, Trajan ranks #6,741 for baby boys with 12 births, holding steady (-5%). In total, more than 811 Trajans have been born in the U.S. since records began in 1880, spanning the 1990s through the 2020s.
Popularity Over Time
Popularity by State
Names that sound like Trajan
Phonetically similar names — useful when Trajan is the vibe but a different syllable count or letter feel might suit better. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.
- Trojan
- Trudgen
- Trudgeon
- Tragen
- Trusion
- Deration
- Trudging
- Turgeon
- Teresian
- Trigon
- Trigone
- Trojans
Source: Datamuse . Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated.
Frequently Asked Questions about Trajan
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About the name Trajan
Trajan is a boy baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1994 and has accumulated 811 births in the dataset. Trajan's peak popularity came in 1999 when it ranked #996. Use the chart and map above to compare Trajan's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.
Continue exploring
- Top names of 1999 →
- Names of the 1990s →
- Names starting with "T" →
- 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.