Glen

At a Glance: Name: Glen – Meaning: valley – Origin: Scottish/Irish Gaelic, via English surname – Gender: Boy – Pronunciation: GLEN

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Glen is a boy's name meaning valley, rooted in Scottish and Irish Gaelic origins and passed into English through use as a surname before becoming a first name. It's pronounced GLEN (/ˈglɛn/), and it fits both the worldly and clean, modern naming styles. It's a short, literal name — the meaning is right there in the word.

Meaning & Origin of Glen

Meaning: Valley.

Origin: Scottish/Irish Gaelic, via English surname.

Source: Wiktionary, Wikipedia.

How to Pronounce Glen

Phonetic: GLEN   IPA: /ˈglɛn/

Popularity of Glen

Glen peaked in 1931, when it ranked #112 in SSA records with 1,563 babies given the name that year. By 2024 it had dropped to #2315, with only 61 babies named Glen — a steep fall over the SSA's 1880-2024 data range.

Source: U.S. Social Security Administration birth-name data, 1880–2024.

Make Glen Name Art

Free printable nursery art for Glen, pre-loaded below — pick a layout, palette, and font, then download a print-ready PNG.

Names With a Similar Story

Derived from shared style, era, and origin data (or, for names we have no style data for, a similar Social Security popularity trajectory) — not a hand-picked list.

• Ailsa
• Alistair
• Arran
• Calder
• Fraser
• Greer

FAQ

What does the name Glen mean?

Valley. (Source: Wiktionary, https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Glen)

How do you pronounce Glen?

Glen is pronounced GLEN (IPA: /ˈglɛn/).

Is Glen a popular name right now?

Glen peaked at #112 in 1931 and is ranked #2315 as of 2024. (U.S. Social Security Administration data, 1880–2024.)

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