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Reuben

Meaning, origin and pronunciation, with published usage by place and year.

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Meaning

See - a son (traditional Hebrew formation)

The exact personal-name entry derives Hebrew Reuben from a see imperative plus son, giving a traditional see-a-son explanation. This supports the licensed gloss. The biblical character’s birth order is an association, not a prediction about a modern bearer; sandwich etymologies are unrelated.

Origin

Hebrew personal-name route

The English given-name entry explicitly identifies the Hebrew source and its component words. The surname is described as transferred from the given name, not as the origin of all modern given-name use. No ancestry or faith is assigned to a bearer.

English pronunciation

/ˈɹu.bən/

General American English.

Recorded English reading, as published. Accents and preferred pronunciations can differ.

Published name usage

Counts apply only to the exact spelling, place, year and recorded usage shown. Places are separate; these figures are never added into a worldwide total. Missing or suppressed records never mean zero.

Latest published record available for this spelling in each place and recorded usage
PlaceYearRecorded usagePublished birthsRankNotes
Canada2025Boys46 · preliminary6252025 figures are preliminary. Quebec counts below five are randomly imputed by the publisher before national aggregation. Accents are removed in the source; this profile was matched only where the catalog spelling was unambiguous. Unpublished values are unknown, not zero. Rank basis: source published.
France2016Boys5 (rounded to 5)6331Counts are rounded to the nearest multiple of five. Ranks use unrounded publisher counts with randomly ordered ties; equally rounded counts can have different ranks. National coverage excludes Mayotte before 2012. Missing years are unavailable, not zero. Automated direction labels are withheld for this rounded-count series. Rank basis: source published.
England & Wales2025Boys1,41229Source-reported counts; unpublished names are not zero. Rank basis: source published.
Northern Ireland2025Boys5729Source-reported counts; unpublished names are not zero. Rank basis: source published.
Scotland2025Boys10737Source-reported counts; unpublished names are not zero. Rank basis: source published.
Ireland2025Boys33156Names below three occurrences are unpublished. Accent recording changed in 2018; comparisons across that boundary may not describe the same spelling coverage. Counts refer to registrations in the year. Missing years are unavailable, not zero. Rank basis: source published.
United States1988Girls511798Source-reported counts; unpublished names are not zero. Rank basis: calculated from published counts.
United States2025Boys269883Source-reported counts; unpublished names are not zero. Rank basis: calculated from published counts.

Canada, Ireland and France coverage includes confidently matched existing profiles only; unmatched spellings are awaiting review. French counts are rounded to five.

Sources & notes

Open an entry for its source, credit, licence and full qualifications. Different name traditions remain separate.

Meaning: See - a son (traditional Hebrew formation)

Checked against cited source

The exact personal-name entry derives Hebrew Reuben from a see imperative plus son, giving a traditional see-a-son explanation. This supports the licensed gloss. The biblical character’s birth order is an association, not a prediction about a modern bearer; sandwich etymologies are unrelated. Credit: Wiktionary contributors. Adapted and condensed by Rare Baby Names under CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). No source audio reused.

Credit: Wiktionary contributors. Adapted by Rare Baby Names: wording shortened and name contexts separated. Recorded pronunciations are shown as published.

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This adapted text is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

CC BY-SA 4.0

Nickname: Rube

Checked against cited source

English given-name relationship. These spellings remain separate in popularity statistics.

Credit: Wiktionary contributors. Adapted by Rare Baby Names: wording shortened and name contexts separated. Recorded pronunciations are shown as published.

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This adapted text is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

CC BY-SA 4.0

Origin: Hebrew personal-name route

Checked against cited source

The English given-name entry explicitly identifies the Hebrew source and its component words. The surname is described as transferred from the given name, not as the origin of all modern given-name use. No ancestry or faith is assigned to a bearer. Credit: Wiktionary contributors. Adapted and condensed by Rare Baby Names under CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). No source audio reused.

Credit: Wiktionary contributors. Adapted by Rare Baby Names: wording shortened and name contexts separated. Recorded pronunciations are shown as published.

View original source

This adapted text is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

CC BY-SA 4.0

English pronunciation: /ˈɹu.bən/

Checked against cited source

General American English.

Credit: Wiktionary contributors. Adapted by Rare Baby Names: wording shortened and name contexts separated. Recorded pronunciations are shown as published.

View original source

This adapted text is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

CC BY-SA 4.0

Spelling variant: Reuven

Checked against cited source

The exact Hebrew personal-name entry documents both Latin forms. Spelling-specific popularity series and preferred pronunciations remain separate. Credit: Wiktionary contributors, exact personal-name or explicitly linked root entries. Sources: https://en.wiktionary.org/w/index.php?title=%D7%A8%D7%90%D7%95%D7%91%D7%9F&oldid=92227019; https://en.wiktionary.org/w/index.php?title=Reuven&oldid=85365999; https://en.wiktionary.org/w/index.php?title=Reuben&oldid=93542536. License: CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Adaptation: Rare Baby Names summarized the documented relationship, root or language-specific reading and retained its qualifiers. No audio, images, literary quotations or biographical passage reused.

Credit: Wiktionary contributors. Adapted by Rare Baby Names: wording shortened and name contexts separated. Recorded pronunciations are shown as published.

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This adapted text is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

CC BY-SA 4.0

Spelling variant: Ruben

Checked against cited source

English given-name relationship. These spellings remain separate in popularity statistics.

Credit: Wiktionary contributors. Adapted by Rare Baby Names: wording shortened and name contexts separated. Recorded pronunciations are shown as published.

View original source

This adapted text is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

CC BY-SA 4.0

Spelling variant: Rubin

Checked against cited source

English given-name relationship. These spellings remain separate in popularity statistics.

Credit: Wiktionary contributors. Adapted by Rare Baby Names: wording shortened and name contexts separated. Recorded pronunciations are shown as published.

View original source

This adapted text is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

CC BY-SA 4.0

country_CA

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country_FR

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country_IE

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Source: NISRA : Website: www.nisra.gov.uk

Attribution: Source: NISRA : Website: www.nisra.gov.uk

License: Open Government Licence v3.0

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(C) Crown copyright. Data supplied by National Records of Scotland.

Attribution: (C) Crown copyright. Data supplied by National Records of Scotland.

License: Open Government Licence v3.0

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Source: Office for National Statistics licensed under the Open Government Licence

Attribution: Source: Office for National Statistics licensed under the Open Government Licence

License: Open Government Licence v3.0

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U.S. Social Security Administration

Attribution: U.S. Social Security Administration

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Statistics Canada, Table 17-10-0147-01, 1991–2025, released 23 September 2026.

Credit: Statistics Canada, Table 17-10-0147-01, 1991–2025, released 23 September 2026.

License: Statistics Canada Open Licence

Adaptation: Adapted from Statistics Canada, First names at birth by sex at birth, selected indicators, Table 17-10-0147-01, reference years 1991–2025. This does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada of this product.

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Central Statistics Office, Ireland, VSA50 and VSA60, updated 27 February 2026.

Credit: Central Statistics Office, Ireland, VSA50 and VSA60, updated 27 February 2026.

License: CC BY 4.0

Adaptation: Adapted by Rare Baby Names: joined the published count and rank indicators and matched unambiguous existing spellings. Source values retained.

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Source : Insee, Fichier des prénoms, updated 16 July 2026.

Credit: Source : Insee, Fichier des prénoms, updated 16 July 2026.

License: Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab)

Adaptation: Adapted by Rare Baby Names: column names and sex codes mapped and unique case-only spellings matched to existing profiles. Published rounded counts and ranks retained.

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