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Benn

Boy name · 33 babies recorded · 1974–2025

Benn: 33 babies born in Scotland since 1974, given to boys, peaking at 6 births in 1994.

Benn started as a short, sturdy form of Benjamin, drawn from the Hebrew Binyamin meaning “son of the right hand” or “son of the south,” but it also stands strong as a Scottish contraction of Benedict, blessed. Pop culture fans know Benn first and foremost as a beloved surname turned first name through Bennet in *Pride and Prejudice*, though the single-n version brings its own crisp charm. Tony Benn, the legendary left-wing British politician and diarist, carried the name into public life with decades of principle and rhetorical fire. There is no major town called Benn, but Ben Nevis, Britain's highest mountain, shares the same Gaelic root meaning “peak.” It remains rarer than Ben as a given name in Scotland, making it a quiet, confident choice with a distinctively northern edge.

Boy 9 of 52 years

Peak year
19946 babies
Latest (2007)
#5953 babies
Total births
33since 1991
5-year trend
▼ 33%vs prior 5y
1980 1990 2000 2010 2020 1994 · 6
Births per year in Scotland. Missing years had a count of 2 or fewer (suppressed by NRS).