Breckin
A masculine given name of Irish origin meaning "speckled" or "freckled".
Name Census estimates that about 1,385 living Americans carry the first name Breckin. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 88.4% of registrations being male. The average person named Breckin today is around 15 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Breckin births was 2009 (96 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Breckin. 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.
Key insights
- • Breckin is a relatively new arrival in the SSA data. The average bearer is just 15 years old, meaning it gained most of its traction in the last two decades.
People living today
1.4K
~ 1 in 247,476 Americans
Peak year
2009
96 babies that year
Average age
15
years old
2024 SSA rank
#7,814
Tracked since 1993
Gender
Gender distribution for Breckin
Breckin leans heavily male at 88.4% of total registrations, but 162 girls have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Breckin as a male name
- Ranked #7,814 in 2024
- 10 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2012 (89 births)
Breckin as a female name
- Ranked #15,693 in 2022
- 5 female births in 2022
- Peak: 2004 (15 births)
Popularity
Breckin: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Breckin from the 1990s through to the 2020s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 714 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2010s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Breckin 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 Breckin during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Breckins live
The SSA's state-level files cover 18 states and territories. Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota recorded the most babies named Breckin, while Washington, Oklahoma, Ohio recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 15 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Breckin
The name Breckin is of Scottish origin, derived from the Gaelic word "breacán," which means "speckled" or "freckled." This name likely originated in the medieval period when Gaelic was widely spoken in Scotland.
The earliest recorded use of the name Breckin dates back to the 16th century in Scotland. It was initially used as a surname, but over time, it also became a first name. The name was particularly popular among Scottish families, especially those with ties to the Highlands.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Breckin was Breckin Erskine, a Scottish nobleman who lived in the late 16th century. He was a member of the influential Erskine family and served as a courtier to King James VI of Scotland.
In the 17th century, Breckin Smellie, a Scottish minister and writer, was born in 1645. He authored several religious texts and served as a minister in the Church of Scotland. His works played a role in shaping the religious landscape of Scotland during that period.
Another notable figure with the name Breckin was Breckin Mercer, a Scottish explorer and adventurer who lived in the late 18th century. He is known for his explorations of the Canadian wilderness and his interactions with Indigenous communities in North America.
In the 19th century, Breckin Matheson was a Scottish artist renowned for his landscape paintings depicting the rugged beauty of the Scottish Highlands. He was born in 1825 and his works are still celebrated for their vivid depictions of Scottish scenery.
Breckin Morrison, born in 1888, was a Scottish poet and writer who gained recognition for his poetic works that captured the essence of rural Scottish life and the struggles of the working class. His poems were widely published and celebrated during his lifetime.
While the name Breckin has its roots in Scotland and was more commonly used in the past, it has since gained popularity in other parts of the world, particularly in the United States. However, its historical significance and connection to Scottish heritage remain an integral part of its meaning and origin.
People
Breckin + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Breckin 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
Breckin: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Breckin?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,385 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Breckin 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 247,476 US residents.
Is Breckin a common name?
We classify Breckin as "Rare". It ranks above 92% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,399 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Breckin most popular?
The single biggest year for Breckin was 2009, when 96 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Breckin is about 15 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Breckin a male name?
Yes, 88.4% of people registered as Breckin 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.
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.