Madisen
A feminine name derived from the surname Madison, meaning "son of Matthew" or "son of the mighty warrior".
Name Census estimates that about 4,954 living Americans carry the first name Madisen. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Madisen today is around 23 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Madisen births was 2000 (378 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Madisen. 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 Madisen with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
5.0K
~ 1 in 69,187 Americans
Peak year
2000
378 babies that year
Average age
23
years old
2024 SSA rank
#6,056
Tracked since 1986
Census
Madisen in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 4,302 people with the first name Madisen, which placed it at #4,372 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
#4,372
National first-name rank
People counted
4.3K
4,302 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
1.4
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
73.3% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Madisen
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Madisen is White at 73.3%. The next largest groups are Black (9.8%) and Hispanic (8.0%). 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 Madisen 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 Madisen at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White73.3% · 3,152
- Black or African American9.8% · 420
- Hispanic or Latino8.0% · 346
- Two or more races6.4% · 277
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.8% · 77
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 30
Popularity
Madisen: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Madisen from the 1980s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 2,613 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Madisen 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 Madisen during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Madisens live
The SSA's state-level files cover 37 states and territories. California, Texas, Washington recorded the most babies named Madisen, while North Dakota, Nevada, Connecticut recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 94 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Madisen
The name Madisen is a relatively modern variant of the name Madison, which itself is derived from the Old English surname "Madisson" or "Mathieson." This surname is believed to have originated from the Germanic personal name "Matto" or "Matheus," meaning "gift of God." The name gained popularity in the United States during the late 20th century, becoming a fashionable choice for baby girls.
While the name has no direct connection to ancient texts or historical records, it shares its roots with the more traditional name Matthew, which has biblical origins. In the New Testament, Matthew was one of the twelve apostles of Jesus Christ and the author of the Gospel of Matthew.
One of the earliest recorded individuals named Madisen was Madisen Beaty, an American actress born in 1995. She is best known for her roles in the television series The Fosters and the film Outlaws and Angels.
Another notable figure with the name Madisen is Madisen Ward, an American singer-songwriter born in 1996. She performs alongside her mother, Mama Ruth, as the folk duo Madisen Ward and the Mama Bear.
In the world of sports, Madisen Zienlinski is a Canadian ice hockey player born in 2000. She has represented Canada at the IIHF World Women's U18 Championship and currently plays for the University of North Dakota.
Madisen Potts, born in 2002, is an American gymnast who has competed at the national level and represented the United States at the 2018 Pacific Rim Gymnastics Championships.
Madisen Berthoud, born in 1998, is a Canadian actress known for her roles in the television series The Killing and The Magicians.
It's worth noting that while the name Madisen has gained popularity in recent decades, it is still considered a relatively uncommon choice when compared to more traditional names. Its unique spelling and modern flair have contributed to its appeal among parents seeking a distinctive yet recognizable name for their daughters.
People
Madisen + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Madisen as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with M
Other first names starting with M with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Madisen: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Madisen?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 4,954 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Madisen 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 69,187 US residents.
Is Madisen a common name?
We classify Madisen as "Rare". It ranks above 96.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 5,052 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Madisen most popular?
The single biggest year for Madisen was 2000, when 378 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Madisen 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 Madisen in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 4,302 people with the name Madisen, or 1.42 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #4,372 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 Madisen 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 Madisen?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Madisen appears almost entirely female. Of the 4,298 people counted with this name, 99.5% were female and only a very small share were male. 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 Madisen?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Madisen is White at 73.3%. The next largest groups are Black (9.8%) and Hispanic (8.0%). 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 Madisen most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Madisen in the 2020 Census, accounting for 73.3% (3,152 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 Madisen in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Madisen a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Madisen in the SSA data are female. 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 Madisen still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Madisen 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 Madisen 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 have Madisen as a first name?
If you just want to know how many Americans are named Madisen, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.