How to say it
ˈreɪ.lɪn
Ewe, or 'ray of light' + 'lake'
ˈreɪ.lɪn
Modern American blend of Rae (Hebrew 'ewe,' a short for Rachel) and Lynn (Welsh 'lake, waterfall'). RaeLynn the country singer (The Voice runner-up, 2012) anchored the naming surge.
Raelynn is a modern American blend of Rae (from Rachel, Hebrew 'ewe' or, in modern English, 'a ray of light') plus Lynn (the Welsh llyn, 'lake' or 'waterfall,' originally a Welsh place-name element). The blend reads as quintessentially modern American Southern. RaeLynn (born Racheal Lynn Woodward, 1994), the American country singer who placed fourth on The Voice season 2 (2012), gave the name its dominant English-language anchor. As a US given name Raelynn entered the top 500 in 2014. Common short: Rae or Lynn.
The standard spelling is Raelynn. Common variants include Raelyn, Raelynne, Rayelynn, but Raelynn is the most widely used form.
peaked at #99 in 2022, currently #116 in 2025.
Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, names given to at least 5 babies in a year, 1880–2025. Reviewed August 2026. See where the names are moving
Raelynn, Raelyn, and Rae-Lynn are all the same name; the Raelynn double-N is the dominant US spelling, popularized by the country singer.
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