Meaghann
A feminine name derived from an Irish surname meaning "vigor" or "force".
Name Census estimates that about 138 living Americans carry the first name Meaghann. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Meaghann today is around 39 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Meaghann births was 1988 (15 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Meaghann. 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.
People living today
138
~ 1 in 2,483,727 Americans
Peak year
1988
15 babies that year
Average age
39
years old
1996 SSA rank
#8,600
Tracked since 1978
Census
Meaghann in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 155 people with the first name Meaghann, which placed it at #44,540 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
#44,540
National first-name rank
People counted
155
155 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
87.1% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Meaghann
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Meaghann is White at 87.1%. The next largest groups are Black (6.5%) and Hispanic (3.2%). 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 Meaghann 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 Meaghann at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White87.1% · 135
- Black or African American6.5% · 10
- Hispanic or Latino3.2% · 5
- Two or more races2.6% · 4
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 1
Popularity
Meaghann: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Meaghann from the 1970s through to the 1990s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1980s, with 71 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1980s peak, Meaghann remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Meaghann 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 Meaghann 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 Meaghann
The given name Meaghann originated from the Irish Gaelic language and culture. It is a variant spelling of the feminine name Maeghain, which is derived from the ancient Gaelic word "maigh" meaning "offspring" or "descendant." This name first appeared in Ireland during the medieval period, around the 12th century.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Meaghann can be found in the Annals of Ulster, a chronicle of medieval Irish history. It mentions a woman named Meaghann Ní Dhomhnaill, who lived in the 14th century and was the daughter of a prominent Irish chieftain.
Throughout history, several notable women have borne the name Meaghann. One such figure was Meaghann Ní Chonchubhair (1450-1512), a renowned Irish noblewoman and poet who was known for her patronage of the arts and her influential role in the Gaelic literary tradition.
Another historical figure was Meaghann Ní Bhroin (1570-1644), a Catholic missionary who traveled to the West Indies and worked tirelessly to convert the indigenous population to Christianity. Her efforts earned her the title of "The Apostle of the West Indies" from the Catholic Church.
In the 17th century, Meaghann Ní Mhurchadha (1620-1689) was a prominent Irish scholar and linguist who made significant contributions to the preservation of the Irish language and literature. She authored several important works, including a dictionary and grammar of the Irish language.
During the 18th century, Meaghann Ní Dhubhghaill (1725-1795) was a celebrated Irish harpist and composer who helped revive the tradition of Irish harp music and inspired future generations of musicians.
While the name Meaghann has its roots in Irish culture, it has gained popularity in other parts of the world, particularly in English-speaking countries, where it is often spelled as Meghan or Meagan. However, the original Irish spelling and pronunciation remain closely tied to the name's historical and cultural origins.
People
Meaghann + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Meaghann as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with M
Other first names starting with M with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Meaghann: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Meaghann?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 138 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Meaghann 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 2,483,727 US residents.
Is Meaghann a common name?
We classify Meaghann as "Very Rare". It ranks above 69.1% 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 Meaghann most popular?
The single biggest year for Meaghann was 1988, when 15 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Meaghann is about 39 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Meaghann in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 155 people with the name Meaghann, or 0.05 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #44,540 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 Meaghann 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 Meaghann?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Meaghann leans strongly female. 161 people counted with this name were female (98.8%), compared with 2 male bearers (1.2%). 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 Meaghann?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Meaghann is White at 87.1%. The next largest groups are Black (6.5%) and Hispanic (3.2%). 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 Meaghann most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Meaghann in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.1% (135 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 Meaghann in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Meaghann a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Meaghann 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 Meaghann still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Meaghann 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 Meaghann 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 are named Meaghann?
If you just want to know how many people share the name Meaghann, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.