UK girl's name
Arwen
A feminine name derived from Sindarin, meaning "noble maiden".
For 2026, the newest official UK baby-name figures on this page are from 2024. That release is the current official benchmark rather than a forecast.
Arwen is a girl's name in the UK records. People looking for Arwen popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2024 in this profile. In that release it ranked #447, with 93 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2022, with 111 births.
This profile covers 1,243 England and Wales registrations across 26 recorded years from 1998 to 2024. The figures come from ONS England and Wales, NRS Scotland and NISRA Northern Ireland, so the page is a view of published baby-name registrations rather than a forecast or a live count of people using the name today.
The latest count is about 84% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.
We estimate that about 1,463 living people in the UK are called Arwen. This uses published birth registrations from England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, then applies ONS national life tables to estimate how many are likely still alive. It does not forecast extra births for 2025 or 2026.
Key insights
- • Arwen ranked #447 for girls in England and Wales in 2024, with 93 registrations.
- • The name peaked in 2022, when 111 girls were registered as Arwen.
- • Arwen ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #215 in 2024.
- • About 1,463 living people in the UK are estimated to have Arwen as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.
Latest rank (E&W)
#447
2024
Births in 2024
93
Latest year
Peak year
2022
111 births
Estimated living
1,463
2026
Meaning
What does Arwen mean?
The name Arwen originates from the fictional Sindarin language created by J.R.R. Tolkien for his novels set in Middle-earth. In Sindarin, the name is composed of the elements "ar" meaning "royal" and "wen" meaning "maiden".
Arwen was the name given to an Elf princess in Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings series. She was the daughter of Elrond, a powerful Elf-lord, and Celebrían, who was descended from the royal line of Galadriel. Arwen's character plays a significant role in the story, as she becomes the wife of Aragorn, the heir to the thrones of Gondor and Arnor.
Although the name Arwen itself does not have a recorded history prior to Tolkien's works, it has since gained popularity and been adopted by many readers and fans of the fantasy genre. Tolkien's creation of the Sindarin language and the names within it have greatly influenced the development of constructed languages and naming conventions in speculative fiction.
The earliest recorded use of the name Arwen would be in Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings novel, which was initially published in three volumes between 1954 and 1955. The character of Arwen is first introduced in the first volume, The Fellowship of the Ring.
While the name Arwen is a fictional creation, it has been embraced by many individuals, particularly those with an affinity for Tolkien's works or an appreciation for unique and meaningful names. Some notable individuals named Arwen include:
1. Arwen Undomiel (born in the Third Age of Middle-earth), the Elf princess and character from J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings. 2. Arwen Elys Dayton, an American author known for her young adult fantasy novels, such as "Seeker" and "Traveler". 3. Arwen Nicki, a Canadian actress known for her roles in television series like "Supernatural" and "The 100". 4. Arwen Curry, an American documentary filmmaker and director, known for her work on films like "Worlds of Ursula K. Le Guin" and "Worlds of Ruppert". 5. Arwen Evenstar, the stage name of an American singer and songwriter who performs Celtic and fantasy-inspired music.
Sourced from namecensus.com.
Popularity
Arwen over time
The chart below shows babies named Arwen registered in England and Wales in the years where the name appears in the published records, from 1998 to 2024. Empty years are left out so rare names are not stretched across long periods where the published files do not show any registrations.
For Arwen, the clearest high point is 2022. The latest England and Wales figure is 93 births in 2024, compared with 111 at the peak.
Babies born per year
Decades
Arwen by decade
Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Arwen was a short-lived spike or a name that stayed in regular use. Average rank is calculated only from years where a published rank exists.
| Decade | Average rank | Total births | Years covered |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020s | #536 | 396 | 5 |
| 2010s | #787 | 499 | 10 |
| 2000s | #1223 | 343 | 10 |
| 1990s | #2701 | 5 | 1 |
Geography
Where Arwen is most common
The bars show the latest published local birth counts for Arwen. They are useful for spotting where the name is showing up in real numbers, while the rank beside each bar shows how strongly it performs inside that region.
Arwen ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #215 in 2024.
Across the UK
Arwen in Scotland and Northern Ireland
Scotland (NRS)
#215 in 2024
26 years of NRS records, 211 total registered
Northern Ireland (NISRA)
#407 in 2024
5 years of NISRA records, 16 total registered
Notable bearers
Famous people named Arwen
-
Arwen Banning
painter
Welsh artist
1970-
-
Arwen Wood
archaeologist
British archaeologist, fl. 2020; Finds Liaison Officer for Buckinghamshire
Related
Names similar to Arwen
- Amelia 94,830
- Ava 54,556
- Amy 52,495
- Alice 46,815
- Abigail 45,658
- Amber 31,922
- Anna 27,802
- Alexandra 19,455
- Amelie 18,051
- Abbie 15,971
- Aimee 15,158
- Annabelle 15,120
FAQ
Arwen: questions and answers
How popular is the name Arwen in the UK right now?
In 2024, Arwen was ranked #447 for girls in England and Wales, with 93 births registered.
When was Arwen most popular?
The peak year on record was 2022, with 111 babies registered as Arwen in England and Wales.
What is the meaning and origin of Arwen?
A feminine name derived from Sindarin, meaning "noble maiden".
How many people are called Arwen in the UK?
A total of 1,243 babies have been registered as Arwen across the 26 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here, plus 211 more in Scotland and 16 in Northern Ireland.
Where is Arwen most common?
In the latest published local rankings, Arwen ranks best in Scotland, where it placed #215 in 2024. The regional bars on this page use birth counts, so they also reflect the size of each region.
Which records is this page based on?
The England and Wales timeline uses ONS baby-name records. Scotland figures come from NRS and Northern Ireland figures come from NISRA. Counts are registrations in published baby-name files. The living estimate uses those birth registrations with ONS national life tables.