Faren
A feminine name with an uncertain meaning or origin.
Name Census estimates that about 259 living Americans carry the first name Faren. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Faren today is around 38 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Faren births was 1986 (85 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Faren. 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 Faren with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
259
~ 1 in 1,323,376 Americans
Peak year
1986
85 babies that year
Average age
38
years old
2015 SSA rank
#15,107
Tracked since 1969
Census
Faren in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 452 people with the first name Faren, which placed it at #22,141 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
#22,141
National first-name rank
People counted
452
452 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
56.6% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Faren
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Faren is White at 56.6%. The next largest groups are Black (23.2%) and Hispanic (8.0%). 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 Faren 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 Faren at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White56.6% · 256
- Black or African American23.2% · 105
- Hispanic or Latino8.0% · 36
- Two or more races4.9% · 22
- Asian and Pacific Islander4.2% · 19
- American Indian and Alaska Native3.1% · 14
Popularity
Faren: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Faren from the 1960s through to the 2010s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1980s, with 192 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1980s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Faren 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 Faren during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Farens live
The SSA's state-level files cover 6 states and territories. Louisiana, Texas, Florida recorded the most babies named Faren, while Ohio, California, Michigan recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 10 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Faren
The name Faren is believed to have its origins in ancient Germanic languages, with roots that can be traced back to the Proto-Germanic word "faran," meaning "to travel" or "to journey." This connection suggests that the name might have been associated with individuals who were renowned travelers or explorers in their respective communities.
In the early medieval period, variations of the name, such as "Faren" and "Farenne," were relatively common among Germanic tribes, particularly those residing in regions that are now part of modern-day Germany and the Netherlands. Some historical records from the 8th and 9th centuries mention individuals bearing this name, although specific details about their lives and accomplishments are often scarce.
One notable figure from this era was Faren the Scribe, a monk who lived in the 9th century and was renowned for his exceptional calligraphic skills. He is credited with producing some of the most beautifully illuminated manuscripts of his time, many of which are now preserved in various libraries and museums across Europe.
As the centuries progressed, the name Faren continued to be used, albeit with varying degrees of popularity. In the 12th century, a knight named Faren von Waldeck was a prominent figure in the court of the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick Barbarossa. He is said to have accompanied the emperor on several military campaigns and was known for his bravery and loyalty.
During the Renaissance period, a notable bearer of the name was Faren Bianchi, an Italian painter and sculptor from Florence who lived in the 15th century. His works, which primarily depicted religious scenes and portraits, were highly regarded by his contemporaries and can still be found in various churches and galleries throughout Italy.
In more recent history, Faren Swinton was a British explorer and writer who lived from 1861 to 1935. He gained fame for his expeditions to remote regions of Africa and Asia, and his published accounts of these journeys were widely read and acclaimed during his lifetime.
While the name Faren may not be as common today as it once was, its rich history and cultural significance as a name associated with travel, exploration, and artistic expression have left an indelible mark on the tapestry of human civilization.
People
Faren + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Faren as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with F
Other first names starting with F with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Faren: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Faren?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 259 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Faren 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 1,323,376 US residents.
Is Faren a common name?
We classify Faren as "Very Rare". It ranks above 77.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 273 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Faren most popular?
The single biggest year for Faren was 1986, when 85 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Faren is about 38 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Faren in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 452 people with the name Faren, or 0.15 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #22,141 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 Faren 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 Faren?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Faren leans strongly female. 363 people counted with this name were female (80.1%), compared with 90 male bearers (19.9%). 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 Faren?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Faren is White at 56.6%. The next largest groups are Black (23.2%) and Hispanic (8.0%). 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 Faren most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Faren in the 2020 Census, accounting for 56.6% (256 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 Faren in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Faren a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Faren in the SSA data are female. 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 Faren still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Faren 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 Faren 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 common is the name Faren?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.