Ann
A feminine name of Hebrew origin meaning "grace" or "favor."
Name Census estimates that about 227,069 living Americans carry the first name Ann. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Ann today is around 64 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Ann births was 1957 (9,068 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Ann. 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 Ann with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Although Ann is used almost entirely for girls, the SSA data does show 1,364 boys registered with the name since 1880.
- • Compared to the 1950s, recent registration numbers for Ann have dropped to less than 5% of what they once were.
People living today
227K
~ 1 in 1,509 Americans
Peak year
1957
9,068 babies that year
Average age
64
years old
2004 SSA rank
#1,141
Tracked since 1880
Census
Ann in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 293,054 people with the first name Ann, which placed it at #178 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
#178
National first-name rank
People counted
293K
293,054 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
97.0
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
87.3% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Ann
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Ann is White at 87.3%. The next largest groups are Black (4.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (3.7%). 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 Ann 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 Ann at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White87.3% · 255,846
- Black or African American4.6% · 13,354
- Asian and Pacific Islander3.7% · 10,715
- Hispanic or Latino2.6% · 7,689
- Two or more races1.5% · 4,454
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 996
Gender
Gender distribution for Ann
Out of the 471,397 babies given the name Ann since 1880, 99.7% were registered as female. The name sits firmly on the female side of the spectrum, with only a handful of male registrations across the entire dataset.
Ann as a male name
- Ranked #10,026 in 2004
- 6 male births in 2004
- Peak: 1942 (41 births)
Ann as a female name
- Ranked #1,141 in 2024
- 211 female births in 2024
- Peak: 1957 (9,040 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Ann appears almost entirely female. Of the 293,049 people counted with this name, 99.9% were female and only a very small share were male.
Popularity
Ann: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Ann from the 1880s through to the 2020s, spanning 15 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1950s, with 87,227 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1950s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Ann 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 Ann during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Anns live
The SSA's state-level files cover 51 states and territories. New York, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts recorded the most babies named Ann, while Nevada, Alaska, Wyoming recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 8,855 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Ann
The name Ann has its origins in the Hebrew name Hannah, which means "grace" or "favor." It is derived from the root word "hanan," meaning "to be gracious." The name was first introduced into the English language through the Latin form "Anna."
Ann was a popular name among early Christians, who revered St. Anne, the mother of the Virgin Mary. The name is mentioned in the New Testament, where St. Anne is described as a pious and devout woman.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Ann can be found in the Domesday Book, a survey of England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. Several women with the name Ann are listed in the book, indicating its widespread use in medieval England.
Throughout history, there have been numerous notable individuals named Ann. One of the most famous is Anne Boleyn (1501-1536), the second wife of King Henry VIII of England. Her influence on the English Reformation and her eventual execution made her a significant figure in British history.
Another prominent Ann was Anne of Austria (1601-1666), the Queen of France and regent for her son, Louis XIV. She played a crucial role in French politics during the turbulent years of the Fronde rebellion.
In the world of literature, Ann Radcliffe (1764-1823) was a pioneering English author of Gothic novels, known for her works such as "The Mysteries of Udolpho" and "The Italian."
Ann Landers (1918-2002), whose real name was Eppie Lederer, was a renowned American advice columnist who dispensed wisdom and guidance to millions of readers through her syndicated column.
Lastly, Ann Bancroft (born 1955) is an American explorer and author who became the first woman to reach the North Pole on foot and by sled in 1986, a remarkable feat of endurance and determination.
These are just a few examples of the many remarkable individuals throughout history who have borne the name Ann, showcasing its enduring popularity and significance across various cultures and time periods.
Notable bearers
Famous people named Ann
People
Ann + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Ann 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
Ann: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Ann?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 227,069 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Ann 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 1,509 US residents.
Is Ann a common name?
We classify Ann as "Common". It ranks above 99.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 471,397 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Ann most popular?
The single biggest year for Ann was 1957, when 9,068 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Ann is about 64 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Ann in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 293,054 people with the name Ann, or 97.03 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #178 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 Ann 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 Ann?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Ann appears almost entirely female. Of the 293,049 people counted with this name, 99.9% 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 Ann?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Ann is White at 87.3%. The next largest groups are Black (4.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (3.7%). 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 Ann most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Ann in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.3% (255,846 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 Ann in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Ann a female name?
Yes, 99.7% of people registered as Ann 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 Ann still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Ann 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 Ann 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 Americans are named Ann?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people share the name Ann at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.