Cauan
A masculine name of Welsh origin meaning "little battler" or "hardy".
Name Census estimates that about 10 living Americans carry the first name Cauan. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Cauan today is around 18 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Cauan births was 2006 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Cauan. 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
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Cauan. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
10
~ 1 in 34,275,434 Americans
Peak year
2006
5 babies that year
Average age
18
years old
2010 SSA rank
#12,548
Tracked since 2006
Popularity
Cauan: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Cauan from the 2000s through to the 2010s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 5 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Cauan 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 Cauan 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 Cauan
The name Cauan is a Welsh given name with origins dating back to the 5th century AD in the region now known as Wales. It is derived from the Old Welsh word "cau," which means "enclosure" or "hollow." This suggests that the name may have originally referred to someone who lived in a valley or a secluded area.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Cauan can be found in the ancient Welsh text known as the "Black Book of Carmarthen," a manuscript dating back to the 13th century. This text contains a collection of poems and stories that were likely passed down through oral tradition for centuries before being written down.
In the 6th century, there was a Welsh saint named Cauan, who is believed to have been born around the year 492 AD. He is remembered for founding several churches and monasteries in the region of Anglesey, off the northwest coast of Wales. His feast day is celebrated on November 24th in the Church in Wales.
Another notable figure in history with the name Cauan was Cauan ap Cyledog, a 7th-century Welsh prince who ruled over the kingdom of Rhôs. He is mentioned in several medieval Welsh genealogies and is believed to have been a descendant of the ancient British kings.
In the 12th century, there was a Welsh nobleman named Cauan ap Maredudd, who served as a royal knight and fought in several conflicts during the Norman conquest of Wales. He is mentioned in contemporary chronicles and is known to have been a loyal supporter of the Welsh prince Owain Gwynedd.
A more recent historical figure with the name Cauan was Cauan Williamson, a Welsh poet and writer who lived in the late 19th century. He was born in 1858 and is best known for his collection of poems titled "Songs of the Gael," which celebrated the culture and traditions of the Welsh people.
While the name Cauan has its roots in ancient Welsh history and culture, it has also been used in other parts of the world, particularly in Brazil and other Portuguese-speaking countries, where it is sometimes spelled as "Cauã" or "Cauam." However, the name's origins and historical significance can be traced back to the Celtic regions of Britain and the early medieval period.
People
Cauan + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Cauan 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
Cauan: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Cauan?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 10 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Cauan 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 34,275,434 US residents.
Is Cauan a common name?
We classify Cauan as "Very Rare". It ranks above 28.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 10 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Cauan most popular?
The single biggest year for Cauan was 2006, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Cauan is about 18 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 Cauan in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Cauan a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Cauan 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 Cauan still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Cauan 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 Cauan 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 common is the name Cauan?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.