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Rohan/a

Rohan (for boys) and Rohana (for girls) mean "to ascend" in Sanskrit. It is pronounced ROW-han in Sanskrit, however, some say this is an alternate or a French spelling of the Anglicized Irish name Rowan, meaning "red-haired," and the pronunciation for that would be closer to RO-an. Currently #601 in the U.S., Rohan was given to 419 boys in 2013. It is used less since the mid-2000's and not at all before 1969. Rohana, on the other hand, is strictly a Hindi name and only started being used around 2006 and was only given to 5 girls in 2013 - a dramatic difference. As a boys name it is also doing well in England and Wales.

 Rohan Kanhai, a cricket player, made this a household name in the Caribbean (and there are four more cricket players named Rohan). Film maker Rohan Fernando, Bob Marley's son Rohan Marley, and actor Rohan Chand all share the name.

 Rohan is also a place name used in The Lord of the Rings, a real French place name, a role-play game "Rohan: Blood Fued," a newborn in Avatar: Legend of Korra, and a tree with the scientific name Mallotus Phillipenesis, also known as Kamala.

 The House of Rohan is a French family of nobility from Rohan, Brittany. They claim ancestry from the noble Breton family of Porhoët and the legendary Celtic leader Conan Meriadoc who is said to have founded Brittany. It is commonly thought that Alain le Noir was the first to adopt Rohan as part of his name, and he built a chateau bearing the name. Vicomte Josselin de Porhoet, whose father built Josselin Castle in the 11th century (which is still owned by relatives to this day), had sons who bore the surname Rohan.
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  1. EricaApril 18, 2015 at 2:43 AM

    Interesting. I only knew it from Tolkien, didn't realize Rohan was taken from a real name.

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