Canaan
Canaan was the 1044th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 212 babies. Its best year was 2016, when it ranked 671st with 385 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 238 places. More babies were named Canaan in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Meaning Not yet researched how we research meanings
- Rank in 2025
- #1,044 boys, down 94 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 212boys
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a boy’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 2016385 babies
- Total since 1880
- 6,167babies recorded
Canaan popularity since 1880
A few girls are given the name too: 324 since 1980, 6 in 2025.
| Year | Rank (boys) | Babies (boys) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #1,044 | 212 |
| 2020 | #950 | 231 |
| 2010 | #1,139 | 163 |
| 2000 | #1,362 | 93 |
| 1990 | #1,590 | 52 |
| 1980 | #2,980 | 15 |
| 1970 | — | — |
| 1960 | — | — |
| 1950 | — | — |
| 1940 | — | — |
| 1930 | — | — |
| 1920 | — | — |
| 1910 | — | — |
| 1900 | — | — |
| 1890 | — | — |
| 1880 | — | — |
How popular is Canaan, counting every spelling?
Canaan is the most common spelling of a name family that ranked #622 for boys in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #1,044 for Canaan on its own. Together these spellings went to 442 boys in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Canaan | 212 | #1,044 | 1,075 |
| Kanan | 194 | #1,109 | 965 |
| Kanon | 29 | #3,809 | 218 |
Spellings count together when they sound the same in American English and are used for the same sex; nicknames and forms that sound different (such as Theo and Theodore) are kept apart. How we group spellings.
How many kids will share the name Canaan?
212 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Canaan (0.06 per 1,000 births). For a boy named Canaan born in 2025, the chance that another child with the same name is in a class of 20 children the same age is under 1 in 50. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 40 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Canaan.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Canaan?
About 5,800 people born in the US named Canaan are alive today, with a median age of 12; half are between 7 and 21. That makes Canaan a young name: most people with it are children.
Babies given the name each year (SSA) times the share of that birth year still alive (SSA life tables). Counts people born in the US only. Method.
Canaan by state
How common Canaan was among boys born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in Tennessee (3.2×), Kentucky (3.1×), Alabama (3.0×), Mississippi (2.8×), Arkansas (2.7×). In 26 states fewer than five boys a year got the name, too few for SSA to publish, so those states show as zero.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Canaan: their share of US boys followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Canaan, they share its era and feel.
Questions about the name Canaan
How popular is the name Canaan?
Canaan was the 1044th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 212 babies. Its best year was 2016, when it ranked 671st with 385 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 238 places. More babies were named Canaan in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Is Canaan a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a boy’s name given the name Canaan in the US.
Where is Canaan most popular?
In 2021–2025, Canaan was most common in Tennessee (0.40 per 1,000 boys), followed by Kentucky and Alabama.