Aran
Derived from the Irish word "arán" meaning "bread" or "sustenance".
Name Census estimates that about 940 living Americans carry the first name Aran. It is a predominantly male name (97.2% of registrations). The average person named Aran today is around 23 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Aran births was 2022 (36 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Aran. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Aran with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
940
~ 1 in 364,632 Americans
Peak year
2022
36 babies that year
Average age
23
years old
2024 SSA rank
#3,595
Tracked since 1969
Census
Aran in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 1,112 people with the first name Aran, which placed it at #11,492 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#11,492
National first-name rank
People counted
1.1K
1,112 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.4
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
51.7% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Aran
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Aran is White at 51.7%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (19.0%) and Hispanic (18.0%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Aran described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Aran at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White51.7% · 575
- Asian and Pacific Islander19.0% · 211
- Hispanic or Latino18.0% · 200
- Two or more races5.8% · 64
- Black or African American5.1% · 57
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 5
Gender
Gender distribution for Aran
Aran leans heavily male at 97.2% of total registrations, but 27 girls have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Aran as a male name
- Ranked #3,595 in 2024
- 31 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2022 (36 births)
Aran as a female name
- Ranked #10,216 in 1998
- 8 female births in 1998
- Peak: 1998 (8 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Aran leans strongly male. 940 people counted with this name were male (84.4%), compared with 174 female bearers (15.6%).
Popularity
Aran: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Aran from the 1960s through to the 2020s, spanning 7 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 269 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Aran remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Aran by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Aran during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Arans live
The SSA's state-level files cover 3 states and territories. California, Texas, New York recorded the most babies named Aran, while New York, Texas, California recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 46 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Aran
The name Aran is believed to have its origins in the Celtic languages, particularly Irish and Scottish Gaelic. It is thought to be derived from the Old Irish word "árann," which means "bread" or "sustenance." The name has been in use since ancient times in Ireland and Scotland.
One of the earliest known references to the name Aran can be found in Irish mythology. Aran was the name of a legendary Irish warrior and chieftain who lived during the 5th century AD. He is mentioned in several ancient Irish texts and is said to have been a renowned leader and defender of his people.
In the 7th century AD, there was a famous Irish monk named Aran who was the founder of the monastic settlement on the Aran Islands off the west coast of Ireland. The islands are still known as the Aran Islands today, and they remain an important part of Irish cultural heritage.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals who bore the name Aran. One of the earliest recorded was Aran mac Finguine, a 7th-century King of Munster in Ireland. Another notable figure was Aran of St. Gall, a 9th-century Irish monk and scribe who worked at the famous monastery of St. Gall in Switzerland.
In the 12th century, there was Aran ua Conchobair, an Irish nobleman and leader who played a significant role in the Anglo-Norman invasion of Ireland. He was a member of the powerful O'Conor dynasty and was known for his military prowess and resistance against the invading Norman forces.
In more recent times, one of the most famous individuals with the name Aran was Aran Ismail (1916-2004), a renowned Egyptian actor and filmmaker. He was one of the most celebrated actors of the golden age of Egyptian cinema and was known for his versatility and talent in both comic and dramatic roles.
These are just a few examples of the individuals who have borne the name Aran throughout history. While the name may have evolved and taken on different spellings and variations over time, its origins can be traced back to the ancient Celtic cultures of Ireland and Scotland, where it was closely associated with concepts of sustenance, nourishment, and cultural heritage.
People
Aran + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Aran as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with A
Other first names starting with A with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Aran: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Aran?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 940 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Aran going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 364,632 US residents.
Is Aran a common name?
We classify Aran as "Very Rare". It ranks above 89.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 963 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Aran most popular?
The single biggest year for Aran was 2022, when 36 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Aran is about 23 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Aran in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 1,112 people with the name Aran, or 0.37 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #11,492 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Aran in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Aran?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Aran leans strongly male. 940 people counted with this name were male (84.4%), compared with 174 female bearers (15.6%). The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Aran?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Aran is White at 51.7%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (19.0%) and Hispanic (18.0%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Aran most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Aran in the 2020 Census, accounting for 51.7% (575 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Aran in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Aran a male name?
Yes, 97.2% of people registered as Aran in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Aran still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Aran in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Aran can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
How many people are named Aran?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.