Benas
A Lithuanian masculine name derived from the word "benas", meaning companion or friend.
Name Census estimates that about 15 living Americans carry the first name Benas. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Benas today is around 11 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Benas births was 2011 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Benas. 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 Benas with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Benas. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
15
~ 1 in 22,850,289 Americans
Peak year
2011
5 babies that year
Average age
11
years old
2021 SSA rank
#12,376
Tracked since 2011
Popularity
Benas: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Benas from the 2010s through to the 2020s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 10 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Benas remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Benas 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 Benas during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Benas
The given name Benas is believed to have originated from the Lithuanian language. It is a masculine name that is thought to be derived from the Lithuanian word "benas," which means "companion" or "comrade."
In Lithuania, the name Benas has been in use for several centuries, with records of its existence dating back to the 16th century. It was particularly popular among the nobility and upper classes of Lithuanian society during this time period.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Benas can be found in the chronicles of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, which mentioned a nobleman named Benas Radvila, who lived in the late 16th century.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals who bore the name Benas. One such figure was Benas Gedgaudas (1788-1865), a Lithuanian writer and poet who was known for his contributions to the development of Lithuanian literature during the 19th century.
Another prominent figure with the name Benas was Benas Karaliauskas (1901-1984), a Lithuanian basketball player and coach. He was a member of the Lithuanian national basketball team and played a crucial role in the development of the sport in Lithuania.
In the realm of religion, there was Benas Krivickas (1619-1677), a Lithuanian Jesuit priest and writer who authored several works on theology and philosophy.
Moving forward in time, Benas Veikalas (1921-2002) was a Lithuanian artist and painter who gained recognition for his landscape paintings and his unique style of depicting the Lithuanian countryside.
Lastly, Benas Lukosiunas (1938-2012) was a Lithuanian writer and journalist who wrote extensively on topics related to Lithuanian culture and history.
While the name Benas has its roots in Lithuanian culture and language, it has also gained some popularity in other parts of the world, particularly among Lithuanian diaspora communities. However, its usage remains most prevalent in Lithuania and among those with Lithuanian heritage.
People
Benas + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Benas as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with B
Other first names starting with B with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Benas: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Benas?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 15 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Benas 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 22,850,289 US residents.
Is Benas a common name?
We classify Benas as "Very Rare". It ranks above 35.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 15 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Benas most popular?
The single biggest year for Benas was 2011, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Benas is about 11 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
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 Benas in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Benas a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Benas 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 Benas still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Benas 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 Benas 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.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many Americans are named Benas?
See how many Americans are named Benas on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.