Cainan
A masculine name from the Hebrew meaning "possessor" or "maker of a nest".
Name Census estimates that about 979 living Americans carry the first name Cainan. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Cainan today is around 17 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Cainan births was 2016 (47 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Cainan. 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.
People living today
979
~ 1 in 350,107 Americans
Peak year
2016
47 babies that year
Average age
17
years old
2024 SSA rank
#3,270
Tracked since 1981
Popularity
Cainan: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Cainan from the 1980s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 338 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Cainan remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Cainan 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 Cainan during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Cainans live
The SSA's state-level files cover 5 states and territories. Texas, California, Indiana recorded the most babies named Cainan, while Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 7 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Cainan
The name Cainan has its origins in ancient Hebrew and is deeply rooted in biblical history. It is believed to be derived from the Hebrew word "qanan," which means "to possess" or "to acquire." This name first appears in the genealogy recorded in the Book of Genesis in the Hebrew Bible, where Cainan is listed as one of the descendants of Adam.
The earliest recorded person with the name Cainan is mentioned in Genesis 5:9-14, where he is described as the son of Enosh and the father of Mahalaleel. According to the biblical account, Cainan lived for 910 years. However, it is important to note that these lifespans recorded in the early chapters of Genesis are understood by many scholars to be symbolic representations rather than literal accounts.
Another notable figure with the name Cainan appears in the genealogy of Jesus Christ recorded in the Gospel of Luke (3:36-37) in the New Testament. This Cainan is not mentioned in the Old Testament genealogies, and his inclusion in Luke's account has puzzled biblical scholars for centuries.
Outside of the biblical context, the name Cainan has been used throughout history, albeit infrequently. One notable individual was Cainan of Inishmaan, an Irish saint and hermit who lived in the 7th century AD. He is venerated in the Catholic Church and is associated with the Aran Islands off the west coast of Ireland.
In the 16th century, Cainan Somerville was a Scottish landowner and prominent figure in the Scottish Reformation. He was born around 1520 and played a significant role in the establishment of Protestantism in Scotland.
Another historical figure was Cainan O'Hartigan, an Irish Catholic priest and scholar who lived in the 17th century. He was renowned for his expertise in the Irish language and contributed to the preservation of Irish literature and culture during a turbulent period in Irish history.
It is worth noting that while the name Cainan has been used throughout history, it has remained relatively uncommon compared to other biblical names. This rarity may be attributed to its unique spelling and pronunciation, as well as its association with obscure figures in biblical genealogies.
People
Cainan + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Cainan as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with C
Other first names starting with C with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Cainan: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Cainan?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 979 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Cainan 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 350,107 US residents.
Is Cainan a common name?
We classify Cainan as "Very Rare". It ranks above 90% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 992 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Cainan most popular?
The single biggest year for Cainan was 2016, when 47 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Cainan is about 17 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Cainan a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Cainan 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.