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Jordan

Boy / Girl name · 8,773 babies recorded · 1974–2025

Jordan: 8,773 babies born in Scotland since 1974, given to both boys and girls, peaking at 664 births in 1993.

The name Jordan flows from the Hebrew *Yarden*, meaning "to descend" or "flow down," a direct reference to the River Jordan, the baptismal site of Jesus Christ. This sacred connection made the name popular in the Middle Ages for crusaders returning with holy water. Its most iconic modern bearer is basketball legend Michael Jordan, whose global fame rocketed the name to new heights in the 1980s and 90s. The River Jordan itself lends its name to the nation of Jordan, and the river's root also appears in the Israeli settlement of Ein Gedi. Interestingly, Jordan was almost exclusively used for boys until the early 1990s, when celebrity couple Kelsey Grammer and Barbara Broccoli chose it for their daughter; today, roughly a third of Scottish baby Jordans are female, giving it one of the most balanced gender profiles of any Scottish top 100 name.