Kanan
Kanan was the 1109th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 194 babies. Its best year was 2022, when it ranked 993rd with 225 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved up 1,891 places. More babies were named Kanan in the 2020s than in any other decade.
Meaning Not yet researched how we research meanings
- Rank in 2025
- #1,109 boys, up 486 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 194boys
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a boy’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 2022225 babies
- Total since 1880
- 1,820babies recorded
Kanan popularity since 1880
A few girls are given the name too: 11 since 1982.
| Year | Rank (boys) | Babies (boys) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #1,109 | 194 |
| 2020 | #1,595 | 102 |
| 2010 | #6,897 | 12 |
| 2000 | #7,827 | 8 |
| 1990 | — | — |
| 1980 | — | — |
| 1970 | — | — |
| 1960 | — | — |
| 1950 | — | — |
| 1940 | — | — |
| 1930 | — | — |
| 1920 | — | — |
| 1910 | — | — |
| 1900 | — | — |
| 1890 | — | — |
| 1880 | — | — |
How popular is Kanan, counting every spelling?
Kanan is a spelling of Canaan, a name family that ranked #622 for boys in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #1,109 for Kanan 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 Kanan?
194 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Kanan (0.05 per 1,000 births). For a boy named Kanan 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 43 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Kanan.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Kanan?
About 1,800 people born in the US named Kanan are alive today, with a median age of 5; half are between 3 and 8. That makes Kanan 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.
Kanan by state
How common Kanan was among boys born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in Louisiana (3.7×), South Carolina (2.9×), Alabama (1.7×), North Carolina (1.6×), Georgia (1.6×). In 24 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 Kanan: their share of US boys followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Kanan, they share its era and feel.
Questions about the name Kanan
How popular is the name Kanan?
Kanan was the 1109th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 194 babies. Its best year was 2022, when it ranked 993rd with 225 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved up 1,891 places. More babies were named Kanan in the 2020s than in any other decade.
Is Kanan a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a boy’s name given the name Kanan in the US.
Where is Kanan most popular?
In 2021–2025, Kanan was most common in Louisiana (0.41 per 1,000 boys), followed by South Carolina and Mississippi.