Shannon Hess
There are approximately 61 people named Shannon Hess living in the United States today. That makes this name combination very rare, occurring at a rate of about 1 in 5,618,924 Americans.
This estimate combines SSA birth records for the first name Shannon with Census Bureau frequency data for the surname Hess. Below you will find a breakdown of both names, including popularity trends, gender data, and Census demographics where available.
Expected bearers
61
1 in 5,618,924
Named Shannon
317K
Alive today
Named Hess
66K
Alive today
US population
343M
Denominator
Estimated living: 317K
Rarity: Common
Gender: Unisex
Peak year: 1970
Average age: 46
Top Census group: White (83.0%)
Estimated bearers: 66K
Rarity: Uncommon
Census rank: #573
Per 100K: 19.26
Top ancestry: White (91.7%)
First name trend
Shannon: popularity over time
Year-by-year SSA birth registrations for the first name Shannon. The peak year was 1970 with 16,118 births. The average person named Shannon today is 46 years old.
Babies born per year
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Shannon
Self-reported race and ethnicity breakdown for people with the first name Shannon, from the 2020 US Census Bureau first-name tables. The largest published group is White at 83.0%.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Shannon described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. These are self-reported numbers, and they describe the population who happened to carry the name Shannon at the time of the Census. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity.
- White83.0% · 249,808
- Black or African American8.1% · 24,301
- Two or more races3.7% · 11,184
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 9,314
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.2% · 3,588
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 2,779
Ethnicity
Ancestry of the Hess surname
Self-reported race and ethnicity breakdown for people with the surname Hess, from the 2020 US Census Bureau. The largest group is White at 91.7%.
The bar chart below shows how people with the surname Hess described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. These are self-reported numbers, and they describe the population who happened to carry the surname Hess at the time of the Census. A surname does not determine a person's race or ethnicity.
- White91.7% · 52,752
- Two or more races3.1% · 1,806
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 1,758
- Black or African American1.0% · 588
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 419
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 234
Methodology
How we calculated this
The first name Shannon has a living-bearer frequency of 0.0925% of the US population, based on 317,066 estimated living Americans carrying this first name (from SSA birth records going back to 1880, adjusted for mortality using CDC life tables).
Even though the Census Bureau now publishes first-name tables, we do not use that file as the main first-name input for this estimate. The latest first-name Census snapshot is from 2020, which makes it 6 years old today. Because Census first-name data is only released once every 10 years, SSA birth records plus CDC survival rates give a better current estimate of how many people are likely alive with the name Shannon right now.
The surname Hess appears at a rate of 19.26 per 100,000 residents in the 2020 Census Bureau surname file, which translates to a frequency of 0.0193%.
Multiplying these two independent frequencies against the current US population of 342,754,338 gives an expected count of approximately 61 people with the full name Shannon Hess. This assumes statistical independence between first and last names, which is a simplification but produces reasonable estimates for most combinations.
Related
Other people named Shannon
Related
Other people with the surname Hess
FAQ
Shannon Hess: questions and answers
How many people are named Shannon Hess?
We estimate approximately 61 people in the United States share the full name Shannon Hess. That works out to about 1 in 5,618,924 Americans. This is calculated by combining the first-name frequency (0.0925%) with the surname frequency (19.26 per 100K) against the current US population.
How rare is the name Shannon Hess?
We classify Shannon Hess as "Very Rare". About 1 in 5,618,924 Americans share this exact first and last name combination.
Is Shannon a male or female name?
Shannon is predominantly unisex. Out of 348,046 total SSA registrations, 15.0% were male and 85.0% were female. See the full Shannon profile for detailed gender data.
Where does this data come from?
First-name data comes from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files (1880 to 2024). Surname data comes from the 2020 US Census Bureau decennial surname tables. Living-bearer estimates use CDC actuarial life tables to adjust for mortality. Read the full methodology.
How common is the name Shannon Hess?
For a quick modern take, check how many people are called Shannon Hess on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.