Eben
A Hebrew name meaning "stone" or "solid rock".
Name Census estimates that about 2,842 living Americans carry the first name Eben. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Eben today is around 31 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Eben births was 2012 (100 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Eben. 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.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Eben with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
2.8K
~ 1 in 120,603 Americans
Peak year
2012
100 babies that year
Average age
31
years old
2024 SSA rank
#2,749
Tracked since 1880
Census
Eben in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 2,643 people with the first name Eben, which placed it at #6,143 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
#6,143
National first-name rank
People counted
2.6K
2,643 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.9
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
70.9% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Eben
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Eben is White at 70.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (11.6%) and Black (7.7%). 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 Eben 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 Eben at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White70.9% · 1,875
- Hispanic or Latino11.6% · 306
- Black or African American7.7% · 204
- Two or more races5.9% · 156
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.8% · 73
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.1% · 29
Gender
Gender distribution for Eben
Out of the 3,586 babies given the name Eben since 1880, 99.8% were registered as male. The name sits firmly on the male side of the spectrum, with only a handful of female registrations across the entire dataset.
Eben as a male name
- Ranked #2,749 in 2024
- 47 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2012 (100 births)
Eben as a female name
- Ranked #9,462 in 1984
- 6 female births in 1984
- Peak: 1984 (6 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Eben leans strongly male. 2,601 people counted with this name were male (98.2%), compared with 47 female bearers (1.8%).
Popularity
Eben: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Eben from the 1880s through to the 2020s, spanning 15 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 711 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Eben remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Eben 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 Eben during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Ebens live
The SSA's state-level files cover 18 states and territories. California, Texas, New York recorded the most babies named Eben, while Wisconsin, Virginia, South Dakota recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 34 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Eben
The name Eben has its origins in the Hebrew language and culture, dating back to ancient times. It is derived from the Hebrew word "eben," which translates to "stone" or "rock." This name holds a strong symbolic meaning, often associated with strength, durability, and resilience.
In the Old Testament, the word "eben" appears numerous times, particularly in reference to the stones used in the construction of sacred structures, such as altars and temples. One notable example is the "Eben Shetiyah," the stone of foundation, which was believed to be the cornerstone upon which the world was built.
The earliest recorded instances of the name Eben can be traced back to ancient Hebrew texts and historical records. However, it is important to note that the name was not widely used as a personal name until much later in history.
One of the earliest known individuals to bear the name Eben was Eben Ezra, a renowned Jewish philosopher, poet, and biblical commentator who lived in the 12th century (1092-1167). His works had a profound impact on Jewish thought and literature during the Middle Ages.
Another notable figure with the name Eben was Eben Budge, an English Egyptologist and writer who lived from 1857 to 1934. He is best known for his translations of ancient Egyptian texts and his contributions to the study of Egyptian archaeology.
In the 17th century, Eben Ezer was a prominent Dutch Sephardic rabbi and author who lived from 1633 to 1686. His works on Jewish law and traditions were highly influential in his time and continue to be studied today.
Eben Jenks Loomis, an American astronomer and mathematician, was born in 1828 and lived until 1900. He made significant contributions to the field of astronomy, including the discovery of several comets and the calculation of planetary orbits.
Eben Byers, an American soldier and politician, lived from 1784 to 1857. He served in the War of 1812 and later became a member of the United States House of Representatives, representing Ohio.
Throughout history, the name Eben has been associated with individuals who have made notable contributions to various fields, such as philosophy, religion, science, and politics. While its usage as a personal name may have fluctuated over time, the name's origins and symbolic meaning continue to resonate with many.
People
Eben + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Eben as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with E
Other first names starting with E with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Eben: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Eben?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 2,842 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Eben 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 120,603 US residents.
Is Eben a common name?
We classify Eben as "Rare". It ranks above 95% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 3,586 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Eben most popular?
The single biggest year for Eben was 2012, when 100 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Eben is about 31 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Eben in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 2,643 people with the name Eben, or 0.88 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #6,143 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 Eben 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 Eben?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Eben leans strongly male. 2,601 people counted with this name were male (98.2%), compared with 47 female bearers (1.8%). 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 Eben?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Eben is White at 70.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (11.6%) and Black (7.7%). 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 Eben most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Eben in the 2020 Census, accounting for 70.9% (1,875 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 Eben in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Eben a male name?
Yes, 99.8% of people registered as Eben 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 Eben still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Eben 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 Eben 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 Americans are named Eben?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.