Kanon
A name of Greek origin meaning "rule" or "standard".
Name Census estimates that about 1,637 living Americans carry the first name Kanon. It is a predominantly male name (90.4% of registrations). The average person named Kanon today is around 14 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Kanon births was 2015 (133 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Kanon. 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 Kanon with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Kanon is a relatively new arrival in the SSA data. The average bearer is just 14 years old, meaning it gained most of its traction in the last two decades.
People living today
1.6K
~ 1 in 209,380 Americans
Peak year
2015
133 babies that year
Average age
14
years old
2024 SSA rank
#2,967
Tracked since 1972
Census
Kanon in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 1,325 people with the first name Kanon, which placed it at #10,165 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
#10,165
National first-name rank
People counted
1.3K
1,325 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.4
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
64.8% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kanon
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Kanon is White at 64.8%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (10.1%) and Two or More Races (9.0%). 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 Kanon 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 Kanon at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White64.8% · 858
- Asian and Pacific Islander10.1% · 134
- Two or more races9.0% · 119
- Black or African American7.6% · 101
- Hispanic or Latino6.9% · 91
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.7% · 22
Gender
Gender distribution for Kanon
Kanon leans heavily male at 90.4% of total registrations, but 158 girls have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Kanon as a male name
- Ranked #2,967 in 2024
- 42 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2015 (127 births)
Kanon as a female name
- Ranked #12,730 in 2024
- 7 female births in 2024
- Peak: 2008 (16 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Kanon leans strongly male. 1,134 people counted with this name were male (86.2%), compared with 182 female bearers (13.8%).
Popularity
Kanon: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Kanon 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 887 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
Kanon 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 Kanon during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Kanons live
The SSA's state-level files cover 23 states and territories. Texas, California, Louisiana recorded the most babies named Kanon, while Washington, Virginia, Oregon recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 19 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Kanon
The name Kanon has its roots in ancient Greek culture, originating from the Greek word "kanon" which means "rule" or "standard." This term was initially used in a mathematical and scientific context, referring to principles or rules that governed specific subjects.
During the Byzantine era, the word "kanon" took on a liturgical meaning, referring to the established rules and regulations governing religious practices and ceremonies within the Eastern Orthodox Church. It was used to denote the accepted texts, hymns, and chants that were deemed appropriate for worship.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Kanon can be found in the works of the renowned Byzantine composer and poet, St. John Damascene, who lived from 675 to 749 AD. He is credited with composing numerous canons, which were poetic hymns arranged in a specific structure, often used during religious services.
In the 9th century, the name Kanon gained further significance with the introduction of the Canon Law, a set of ecclesiastical rules and regulations that governed the Catholic Church. This body of law was compiled and codified by scholars and canonists, contributing to the name's association with legal and ecclesiastical matters.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Kanon. One of the most prominent figures was Kanon of Byzantium, a renowned scholar and mathematician who lived in the 5th century AD. He is best known for his work on the calculation of the dates of Easter, which played a crucial role in the development of the Julian calendar.
Another notable figure was Kanon of Alexandria, a physician and philosopher who lived in the 6th century AD. He made significant contributions to the field of medicine and is credited with writing treatises on various medical topics, including anatomy and pharmacology.
In the realm of art and literature, the name Kanon is associated with the 16th-century Italian poet and playwright, Giambattista Cinthio Giraldi, also known as Kanon Giraldi. He was a prolific writer and is particularly renowned for his collection of tragic tales, which served as inspiration for several of Shakespeare's plays, including Othello.
During the Renaissance period, the name Kanon gained prominence with the Italian artist and architect, Giulio Romano, whose birth name was Gian Piero Kanon. He was a celebrated artist and a prominent figure in the Mannerist movement, known for his innovative architectural designs and frescoes adorning various buildings in Italy.
Another notable figure bearing the name Kanon was the 19th-century Russian composer and music theorist, Kanon Albertovich Kuchukashvili. He made significant contributions to the development of Russian classical music and is renowned for his vocal compositions, particularly his liturgical works.
People
Kanon + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Kanon as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with K
Other first names starting with K with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Kanon: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Kanon?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,637 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Kanon 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 209,380 US residents.
Is Kanon a common name?
We classify Kanon as "Rare". It ranks above 92.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,653 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Kanon most popular?
The single biggest year for Kanon was 2015, when 133 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Kanon is about 14 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Kanon in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 1,325 people with the name Kanon, or 0.44 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #10,165 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 Kanon 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 Kanon?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Kanon leans strongly male. 1,134 people counted with this name were male (86.2%), compared with 182 female bearers (13.8%). 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 Kanon?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Kanon is White at 64.8%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (10.1%) and Two or More Races (9.0%). 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 Kanon most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Kanon in the 2020 Census, accounting for 64.8% (858 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 Kanon in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Kanon a male name?
Yes, 90.4% of people registered as Kanon 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 Kanon still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Kanon 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 Kanon 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 have Kanon as a first name?
For a quick modern take, check how many people share the name Kanon on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.