Daiguan
A Chinese masculine given name meaning "great official" or "mighty officer".
Name Census estimates that about 5 living Americans carry the first name Daiguan. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Daiguan today is around 36 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Daiguan births was 1989 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Daiguan. 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 Daiguan. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
5
~ 1 in 68,550,868 Americans
Peak year
1989
5 babies that year
Average age
36
years old
1989 SSA rank
#8,133
Tracked since 1989
Popularity
Daiguan: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Daiguan 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 Daiguan during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 5 | 0 | 5 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Daiguan
The name Daiguan is a relatively uncommon given name with origins rooted in Chinese culture and language. It is composed of two distinct Chinese characters, "dai" meaning "great" or "large," and "guan" meaning "official" or "authority." Linguistic experts believe this name arose during the Tang Dynasty (618-907 AD), a golden age of Chinese civilization and cultural development.
Historical records indicate that Daiguan was initially used as a title or honorific for high-ranking government officials and scholars in imperial China. Over time, it transitioned into a given name, likely bestowed upon sons with the hope they would attain positions of prominence and respect within society.
The earliest documented use of Daiguan as a personal name dates back to the Song Dynasty (960-1279 AD). During this era, a renowned Confucian philosopher named Daiguan Cheng (1033-1107) made significant contributions to the Neo-Confucian movement, which sought to revive and reinterpret the teachings of Confucius.
Another notable figure bearing the name was Daiguan Zheng (1185-1265), a highly accomplished poet, calligrapher, and painter during the Southern Song Dynasty. His works are still celebrated today for their artistic mastery and profound insights into the human condition.
In more recent history, Daiguan Xie (1879-1952) was a prominent educator and reformer who played a pivotal role in modernizing China's education system during the early 20th century. His progressive ideas and advocacy for Western-style education left a lasting impact on generations of Chinese scholars and intellectuals.
Additionally, Daiguan Zhang (1919-1992) was a distinguished military leader who served as a general in the People's Liberation Army. He played a crucial role in several major campaigns during the Chinese Civil War and later held influential positions in the central government.
Another figure of note is Daiguan Li (born 1947), a highly acclaimed artist renowned for his masterful ink paintings and calligraphic works. His compositions have been exhibited internationally and are celebrated for their innovative interpretations of traditional Chinese artistic techniques.
While not an exhaustive list, these examples showcase the diverse individuals who have borne the name Daiguan throughout history, each leaving their mark in various fields, from philosophy and literature to education, military, and the arts.
People
Daiguan + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Daiguan as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with D
Other first names starting with D with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Daiguan: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Daiguan?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 5 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Daiguan 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 68,550,868 US residents.
Is Daiguan a common name?
We classify Daiguan as "Very Rare". It ranks above 18.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 5 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Daiguan most popular?
The single biggest year for Daiguan was 1989, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Daiguan is about 36 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 Daiguan in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Daiguan a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Daiguan 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 Daiguan still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Daiguan 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 Daiguan 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 many people are named Daiguan?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans are named Daiguan at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.