Riaan is a name with two separate roots: in India it is a modern name usually explained as "little king", and in South Africa it is the Afrikaans form of Ryan, which carries the same meaning in Irish. It is especially common among Indian American families. Riaan entered the US top 1000 in 2015 and peaked at number 861 in 2016, but has since fallen back to number 1764 among boys' names in 2025.