Dan

“Variant of Daniel — God is my judge” — Hebrew origin

Boy's name · #1962 in the US (2025) · Heirloom

Dan belongs to an older America first — it reached #86 back in 1881 — yet it still appears in today's records at #1962. About 107,000 boys have carried it since 1880. In all that time it has never once missed a year of the national records.

Around the world: about 1 in 720 boys in Slovenia (2025) · about 1 in 1,600 boys in Ireland (2025) · about 1 in 2,100 boys in N. Ireland (2025).

Appears in 2020-2025 birth records of 7 states. See the full state-by-state map on this page.

Famous Dans

Dan Brown — American novelist (born 1964)
Dan Quayle — vice president of the United States from 1989 to 1993
Dan Shechtman — Israeli scientist
Dan Castellaneta — American actor
Dan Aykroyd — Canadian-American actor (born 1952)

In stories & tradition

Dan — Genesis 30 · Genesis 35
Dan Dare — Eagle
Dan Hibiki — Street Fighter

What Dans become

Among 5,097 notable people named Dan:

Sports figures appear 1.69× more often than among typical names — e.g. Dan Calichman, American soccer player (born 1968).

Similar names: Danny · Marion · Dave · Josh · Oren · Ben

Browse more boy names — popularity, trends and eras for 5,700+ American names, free.

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