Kanaan
Kanaan was the 2661st most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 49 babies. Its best year was 2018, when it ranked 1769th with 87 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 214 places. More babies were named Kanaan in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Meaning (as Cannon) several surname sources · Irish, English, French
- Rank in 2025
- #2,661 boys, down 869 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 49boys
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a boy’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 201887 babies
- Total since 1880
- 1,193babies recorded
What does the name Kanaan mean?
Kanaan is a spelling of Cannon, pronounced the same way, so it shares Cannon's meaning and origin.
Cannon is a surname with several sources, according to Wiktionary. In Ireland it anglicizes Ó Canann or Ó Canáin, descendant of Cana or Canán, names connected with cana, wolf cub. In England it comes from canon, a church official, and in France it is a variant of Canon. The modern word cannon, a large gun, comes from Italian cannone, a big tube, as the American Heritage Dictionary explains, and is a separate word. Cannon has been used as a boys' name since the 1900s.
cana (Irish, “wolf cub”)canon (Middle English, “church official”)
How sure is this? Uncertain. Several unrelated surname origins; the weapon word is separate.
See also: Irish names.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Cannon' (English section), Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0; facts restated, no text reused)
- The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th ed., entry 'cannon' (etymology), HarperCollins / Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
- The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th ed., entry 'canon' (etymology), HarperCollins / Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
- US Social Security Administration, national baby-name data 1880-2025 (yob*.txt), team3 computation of first year recorded, US Social Security Administration (public domain)
Kanaan popularity since 1880
| Year | Rank (boys) | Babies (boys) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #2,661 | 49 |
| 2020 | #1,792 | 84 |
| 2010 | #4,050 | 25 |
| 2000 | #7,111 | 9 |
| 1990 | #5,191 | 10 |
| 1980 | — | — |
| 1970 | — | — |
| 1960 | — | — |
| 1950 | — | — |
| 1940 | — | — |
| 1930 | — | — |
| 1920 | — | — |
| 1910 | — | — |
| 1900 | — | — |
| 1890 | — | — |
| 1880 | — | — |
How popular is Kanaan, counting every spelling?
Kanaan is a spelling of Cannon, a name family that ranked #413 for boys in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #2,661 for Kanaan on its own. Together these spellings went to 786 boys in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cannon | 374 | #722 | 2,187 |
| Kannon | 263 | #904 | 1,671 |
| Canon | 64 | #2,211 | 442 |
| Kanaan | 49 | #2,661 | 336 |
| Kanen | 18 | #5,310 | 116 |
| Cannan | 5 | #12,357 | 50 |
| Kanin | — | — | 45 |
| Kannen | 8 | #9,303 | 43 |
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 Kanaan?
49 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Kanaan (0.01 per 1,000 births). For a boy named Kanaan 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 171 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Kanaan.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Kanaan?
About 1,200 people born in the US named Kanaan are alive today, with a median age of 9; half are between 5 and 16. That makes Kanaan 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.
Kanaan by state
How common Kanaan was among boys born in each state in 2021–2025. In 43 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 Kanaan: their share of US boys followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Kanaan, they share its era and feel.
Questions about the name Kanaan
What does Kanaan mean?
Kanaan is a spelling of Cannon, usually explained as “several surname sources”, but this is uncertain. Certainty: uncertain.
How popular is the name Kanaan?
Kanaan was the 2661st most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 49 babies. Its best year was 2018, when it ranked 1769th with 87 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 214 places. More babies were named Kanaan in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Is Kanaan a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a boy’s name given the name Kanaan in the US.
Where is Kanaan most popular?
In 2021–2025, Kanaan was most common in Alabama (0.10 per 1,000 boys), followed by Georgia and North Carolina.