Haaken
Scandinavian masculine name derived from the Old Norse name Håkan.
Name Census estimates that about 41 living Americans carry the first name Haaken. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Haaken today is around 14 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Haaken births was 2009 (8 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Haaken. 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 Haaken. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
41
~ 1 in 8,359,862 Americans
Peak year
2009
8 babies that year
Average age
14
years old
2018 SSA rank
#12,828
Tracked since 2006
Popularity
Haaken: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Haaken 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 23 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
Haaken 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 Haaken 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 Haaken
The name Haaken has its origins in the Old Norse language and is a masculine name that has been in use since the Viking Age in Scandinavia. It is derived from the Old Norse name Hákon, which is a combination of the elements "hár" meaning "high" and "konr" meaning "descendant" or "son." Together, the name can be interpreted as "high-born" or "son of a noble family."
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Haaken appears in the Icelandic Sagas, which are a collection of medieval Icelandic literature. These sagas mention various Norwegian kings and nobles who bore this name, such as Haaken the Good, who ruled Norway from 934 to 961 AD. Another notable figure was Haaken Haakonsson, who was the King of Norway from 1217 to 1263 AD and played a crucial role in establishing Norway's sovereignty.
During the Middle Ages, the name Haaken was particularly popular among the Norwegian and Danish royal families. For instance, Haaken IV Haakonsson, also known as Haaken the Old, was the King of Norway from 1217 to 1263 AD and is remembered for his efforts in unifying the Norwegian kingdom. Another famous bearer of this name was Haaken V Magnusson, who reigned as the King of Norway from 1299 to 1319 AD.
In more recent times, the name Haaken has been less commonly used, but there have been a few notable individuals who have carried it. One such person was Haaken Christensen (1872–1933), a Norwegian-American novelist and playwright who is best known for his works that explored the experiences of Norwegian immigrants in the United States.
Another prominent figure was Haaken Lie (1869–1939), a Norwegian politician and diplomat who served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs and played a crucial role in Norway's neutrality during World War I. Additionally, Haaken Berner Svendsen (1887–1974) was a Norwegian sailor and explorer who participated in several Antarctic expeditions, including the famous Mawson's Australasian Antarctic Expedition from 1911 to 1914.
While the name Haaken has its roots in Old Norse and Scandinavian history, it has been used across various cultures and regions over time. Despite its historical significance, it has become less common in recent decades, but it remains a unique and distinctive name with a rich cultural heritage.
People
Haaken + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Haaken as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with H
Other first names starting with H with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Haaken: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Haaken?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 41 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Haaken 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 8,359,862 US residents.
Is Haaken a common name?
We classify Haaken as "Very Rare". It ranks above 51.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 41 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Haaken most popular?
The single biggest year for Haaken was 2009, when 8 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Haaken is about 14 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 Haaken in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Haaken a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Haaken 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 Haaken still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Haaken 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 Haaken 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 Haaken?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.