Laithan
A masculine name of Irish origin likely derived from the Gaelic word "Laith" meaning "brave" or "champion".
Name Census estimates that about 144 living Americans carry the first name Laithan. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Laithan today is around 11 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Laithan births was 2010 (18 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Laithan. 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 Laithan with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
144
~ 1 in 2,380,238 Americans
Peak year
2010
18 babies that year
Average age
11
years old
2024 SSA rank
#11,726
Tracked since 2007
Popularity
Laithan: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Laithan from the 2000s through to the 2020s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 92 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Laithan remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Laithan 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 Laithan 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 Laithan
The name Laithan is of Scottish Gaelic origin, deriving from the Gaelic word "laidir," which means "strong" or "hardy." It is believed to have first emerged in the Scottish Highlands during the medieval period, around the 12th or 13th century.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Laithan can be found in the ancient chronicles of the Clan MacLean, a prominent Scottish clan hailing from the Hebrides islands. In these chronicles, a warrior named Laithan MacLean is mentioned as a brave and fearless fighter who played a crucial role in defending the clan's territories during the clan wars of the 13th century.
In the 15th century, a Scottish nobleman named Laithan Douglas is recorded as having participated in the Wars of the Roses, a series of civil wars fought between the House of Lancaster and the House of York over the English throne. Douglas was a loyal supporter of the Lancastrian cause and fought alongside King Henry VI's forces.
Another notable figure bearing the name Laithan was a 16th-century Scottish poet and writer known as Laithan MacMhuirich. He was a member of the renowned MacMhuirich bardic family, who served as hereditary poets and historians to the Lords of the Isles, a powerful maritime kingdom in western Scotland.
In the 18th century, a Scottish explorer named Laithan MacKenzie gained recognition for his expeditions to the Arctic regions. MacKenzie's detailed accounts of his journeys and encounters with the Inuit people provided valuable insights into the cultures and traditions of the Arctic regions.
One of the most recent historical figures with the name Laithan was a Scottish soldier named Laithan MacDonald, who served in the British Army during World War I. MacDonald was awarded the Victoria Cross, the highest military decoration for valor in the British armed forces, for his exceptional bravery and courage on the battlefield during the Battle of the Somme in 1916.
While the name Laithan is not as common today as it once was, it remains a part of Scottish heritage and a reminder of the country's rich cultural traditions and history.
People
Laithan + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Laithan as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with L
Other first names starting with L with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Laithan: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Laithan?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 144 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Laithan 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 2,380,238 US residents.
Is Laithan a common name?
We classify Laithan as "Very Rare". It ranks above 69.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 145 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Laithan most popular?
The single biggest year for Laithan was 2010, when 18 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Laithan is about 11 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 Laithan in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Laithan a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Laithan 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 Laithan still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Laithan 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 Laithan 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 Laithan?
For a quick modern take, check how many people have the name Laithan on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.