Chason
Of Native American origin, a name meaning "hunter" or "brave fighter".
Name Census estimates that about 1,215 living Americans carry the first name Chason. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Chason today is around 23 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Chason births was 2009 (53 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Chason. 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
1.2K
~ 1 in 282,102 Americans
Peak year
2009
53 babies that year
Average age
23
years old
2024 SSA rank
#8,412
Tracked since 1974
Census
Chason in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 983 people with the first name Chason, which placed it at #12,598 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
#12,598
National first-name rank
People counted
983
983 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.3
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
67.4% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Chason
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Chason is White at 67.4%. The next largest groups are Black (19.0%) and Two or More Races (4.6%). 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 Chason 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 Chason at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White67.4% · 663
- Black or African American19.0% · 187
- Two or more races4.6% · 45
- Hispanic or Latino4.2% · 41
- Asian and Pacific Islander3.4% · 33
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.4% · 14
Popularity
Chason: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Chason from the 1970s through to the 2020s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 343 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
Chason 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 Chason during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Chasons live
The SSA's state-level files cover 5 states and territories. Texas, Georgia, Florida recorded the most babies named Chason, while Alabama, North Carolina, Florida recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 34 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Chason
The name Chason is derived from the Old French word "chacier," which means "to hunt" or "to chase." This name originated in medieval France, where it was commonly used among the nobility and gentry classes, particularly those involved in hunting and outdoor pursuits.
In the early 12th century, the name Chason first appeared in historical records, such as the Chartulary of Saint-Père de Chartres, where it was written as "Chaceor" or "Chaceur." These early spellings reflect the name's origins in the French language and its association with hunting activities.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Chason was Baudouin Chason, a French nobleman and knight who lived during the 13th century. He was known for his participation in the Seventh Crusade, led by King Louis IX of France, and his bravery in battles against the Saracens.
In the 14th century, the name Chason gained further prominence with the rise of the House of Chason, a prominent noble family from the Champagne region of France. Members of this family held significant positions in the French court and were renowned for their military prowess and hunting skills.
Another notable figure bearing the name Chason was Jacques Chason, a 16th-century French explorer and navigator. He accompanied Jacques Cartier on his voyages to the Americas and played a crucial role in mapping and charting the Gulf of St. Lawrence and the St. Lawrence River.
During the Renaissance period, the name Chason was also associated with the arts and literature. One notable example is Pierre Chason, a 16th-century French poet and playwright who was part of the Pléiade, a group of influential poets and writers in the French Renaissance.
In the 18th century, the name Chason gained recognition in military circles with the rise of François-Joseph Chason, a French general who served under Napoleon Bonaparte. He was known for his strategic brilliance and his leadership during the Napoleonic Wars, particularly in the Battle of Austerlitz.
Throughout its history, the name Chason has been borne by individuals from various walks of life, including nobles, knights, explorers, artists, and military leaders. While its origins lie in the French language and hunting traditions, the name has transcended its original meaning and has become a part of the rich tapestry of European cultural heritage.
People
Chason + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Chason 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
Chason: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Chason?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,215 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Chason 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 282,102 US residents.
Is Chason a common name?
We classify Chason as "Rare". It ranks above 91.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,239 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Chason most popular?
The single biggest year for Chason was 2009, when 53 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Chason is about 23 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Chason in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 983 people with the name Chason, or 0.33 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #12,598 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 Chason 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 Chason?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Chason leans strongly male. 961 people counted with this name were male (97.6%), compared with 24 female bearers (2.4%). 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 Chason?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Chason is White at 67.4%. The next largest groups are Black (19.0%) and Two or More Races (4.6%). 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 Chason most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Chason in the 2020 Census, accounting for 67.4% (663 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 Chason in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Chason a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Chason 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 Chason still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Chason 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 Chason 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 Chason?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.