| Ryu | Kaito | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | dragon | Ocean; soar |
| Origin | japanese | Japanese |
| Gender | Boy | Boy |
| Pronunciation | ryoo | KY-toh |
| Syllables | 1 | 2 |
| First appeared | 1985 | 1994 |
| Peak year | 2012 (130) | 2022 (84) |
| In 2025 | 59 | 71 |
| Trend | Steady | Rising |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Ryu | Kaito |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 483 | 426 |
| 2010s | 741 | 463 |
| 2000s | 372 | 293 |
| 1990s | 77 | 53 |
| 1980s | 12 | 0 |
From Japanese 龍 / 竜 (ryuu) 'dragon'. Hedge: more often a dragon-bearing element within compound names than a standalone given name, and the same sound is written with other kanji meaning 'noble/prosperous' (隆), 'flow' (流) or 'lapis lazuli' (琉); the dragon meaning applies to the 龍/竜 spelling. Romanized Ryu or Ryuu (the macron/double-u marks a long vowel).
Kaito commonly joins the kanji for “sea/ocean” with “soar” or “fly.”
Kaito is more popular than Ryu today: about 71 US babies were given the name Kaito in 2025, compared with 59 named Ryu.
Ryu means dragon (japanese origin), while Kaito means Ocean; soar (Japanese origin).
In US records, Ryu first appears in 1985 and Kaito in 1994, so Ryu has the longer recorded history.