Braidan
Meaning "descendant of sadness" and of Irish origin.
Name Census estimates that about 136 living Americans carry the first name Braidan. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Braidan today is around 19 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Braidan births was 2010 (19 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Braidan. 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 Braidan with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
136
~ 1 in 2,520,252 Americans
Peak year
2010
19 babies that year
Average age
19
years old
2017 SSA rank
#12,534
Tracked since 1998
Census
Braidan in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 164 people with the first name Braidan, which placed it at #43,191 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
#43,191
National first-name rank
People counted
164
164 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
78.7% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Braidan
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Braidan is White at 78.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (9.1%) and Two or More Races (5.5%). 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 Braidan 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 Braidan at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White78.7% · 129
- Hispanic or Latino9.1% · 15
- Two or more races5.5% · 9
- Black or African American3.0% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native3.0% · 5
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 1
Popularity
Braidan: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Braidan from the 1990s through to the 2010s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 87 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2000s peak, Braidan remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Braidan 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 Braidan 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 Braidan
The given name Braidan has its origins in the Irish Gaelic language, with roots dating back to the medieval period. It is believed to be a variant of the name Brayden, which itself is derived from the Old Irish word "bráth," meaning "great" or "illustrious." The name's earliest recorded usage can be traced back to the 10th century in historical records and ancient manuscripts from Ireland.
One of the earliest known individuals to bear the name Braidan was Braidan Mac Cathmhaoil, a renowned Irish poet and scholar who lived during the 12th century. His works, which explored themes of love, nature, and Irish mythology, were widely celebrated and helped to popularize the name among the Irish nobility and literary circles of the time.
In the 13th century, a notable figure named Braidan Ó Conchobhair emerged as a respected military leader and advisor to the King of Connacht, one of the ancient provinces of Ireland. His strategic prowess and loyalty to the crown earned him a place in the annals of Irish history.
During the 16th century, Braidan O'Reilly, a prominent Catholic priest and scholar, made significant contributions to the preservation of Irish literature and language. His efforts to safeguard Ireland's cultural heritage during a period of religious turmoil and political upheaval left a lasting impact and helped to ensure the survival of the name Braidan.
In the realm of art and literature, Braidan O'Donnell, an Irish painter and poet of the 18th century, gained recognition for his vivid depictions of Irish landscapes and his poignant verses celebrating the beauty of his homeland. His works are celebrated as a testament to the enduring cultural traditions of Ireland.
Another notable figure bearing the name Braidan was Braidan MacCormack, a 19th-century Irish revolutionary who played a pivotal role in the fight for Irish independence. His unwavering commitment to the cause of Irish freedom and his sacrifice in the face of adversity have cemented his place as a revered figure in Irish history.
People
Braidan + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Braidan 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
Braidan: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Braidan?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 136 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Braidan 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 2,520,252 US residents.
Is Braidan a common name?
We classify Braidan as "Very Rare". It ranks above 68.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 137 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Braidan most popular?
The single biggest year for Braidan was 2010, when 19 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Braidan is about 19 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Braidan in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 164 people with the name Braidan, or 0.05 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #43,191 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 Braidan 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 Braidan?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Braidan leans strongly male. 153 people counted with this name were male (93.3%), compared with 11 female bearers (6.7%). 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 Braidan?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Braidan is White at 78.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (9.1%) and Two or More Races (5.5%). 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 Braidan most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Braidan in the 2020 Census, accounting for 78.7% (129 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 Braidan in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Braidan a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Braidan 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 Braidan still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Braidan 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 Braidan 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 called Braidan?
Find out how many people have the name Braidan on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.