Quyen
Vietnamese feminine name meaning "talent" or "ability".
Name Census estimates that about 362 living Americans carry the first name Quyen. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 88.9% of registrations being female. The average person named Quyen today is around 33 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Quyen births was 1983 (30 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Quyen. 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
362
~ 1 in 946,835 Americans
Peak year
1983
30 babies that year
Average age
33
years old
2007 SSA rank
#12,016
Tracked since 1977
Census
Quyen in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 5,127 people with the first name Quyen, which placed it at #3,843 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
#3,843
National first-name rank
People counted
5.1K
5,127 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
1.7
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Asian and Pacific Islander
97.9% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Quyen
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Quyen is Asian/Pacific Islander at 97.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (1.0%) and White (0.7%). 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 Quyen 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 Quyen at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander97.9% · 5,017
- Two or more races1.0% · 49
- White0.7% · 38
- Hispanic or Latino0.2% · 12
- Black or African American0.2% · 11
Gender
Gender distribution for Quyen
Quyen leans heavily female at 88.9% of total registrations, but 42 boys have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Quyen as a male name
- Ranked #12,016 in 2007
- 6 male births in 2007
- Peak: 1983 (8 births)
Quyen as a female name
- Ranked #13,170 in 2021
- 7 female births in 2021
- Peak: 1983 (22 births)
2020 Census snapshot
The 2020 Census sex table shows Quyen on both sides of the split. Of the 5,127 people counted with this name, 1,385 were male (27.0%) and 3,742 were female (73.0%).
Popularity
Quyen: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Quyen from the 1970s through to the 2020s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1980s, with 158 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
Quyen 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 Quyen during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Quyens live
Origin
Meaning and history of Quyen
The name Quyen has its origins in the Vietnamese language. It is derived from the word "quyền" which means "power" or "authority" in Vietnamese. The name Quyen carries a strong and authoritative meaning, often associated with leadership and influence.
During the ancient times of Vietnam, the name Quyen was commonly given to children born into noble or influential families. It was a name that signified strength, power, and the potential for greatness. The name can be traced back to the Ly Dynasty, which ruled over Vietnam from 1009 to 1225 AD.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Quyen appears in the historical text "Đại Việt Sử Ký Toàn Thư" (Complete Annals of Đại Việt). This text mentions a prominent figure named Quyen Trung, who played a significant role in the struggle against the Chinese occupation in the 10th century.
Throughout Vietnamese history, several notable individuals have borne the name Quyen. One such figure was Quyen Bui (1926-1985), a renowned Vietnamese author and poet who played a pivotal role in the literary renaissance of Vietnam during the 20th century.
Another prominent figure was Quyen Nhu (1924-2001), a Vietnamese politician and diplomat who served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs for the Republic of Vietnam from 1967 to 1975. He was instrumental in shaping Vietnam's international relations during a turbulent period in the country's history.
In the realm of sports, Quyen Le (born 1981) is a notable Vietnamese-American professional mixed martial artist. She has competed in various organizations, including the UFC, and has made significant contributions to the promotion of women's mixed martial arts.
Quyen Thi Xuan (born 1965) is a Vietnamese writer and journalist who has gained recognition for her works exploring themes of love, family, and social issues. Her writings have been acclaimed for their profound insights and have earned her numerous literary awards.
Quyen Dinh (born 1972) is a Vietnamese-American engineer and entrepreneur. He co-founded the software company Centric Software, which has become a leading provider of product lifecycle management solutions for various industries.
The name Quyen continues to be a popular choice among Vietnamese families, carrying the essence of strength, leadership, and authority. Its rich historical roots and cultural significance make it a cherished name deeply rooted in the Vietnamese tradition.
People
Quyen + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Quyen as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with Q
Other first names starting with Q with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Quyen: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Quyen?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 362 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Quyen 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 946,835 US residents.
Is Quyen a common name?
We classify Quyen as "Very Rare". It ranks above 81.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 377 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Quyen most popular?
The single biggest year for Quyen was 1983, when 30 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Quyen is about 33 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Quyen in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 5,127 people with the name Quyen, or 1.70 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #3,843 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 Quyen 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 Quyen?
The 2020 Census sex table shows Quyen on both sides of the split. Of the 5,127 people counted with this name, 1,385 were male (27.0%) and 3,742 were female (73.0%). 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 Quyen?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Quyen is Asian/Pacific Islander at 97.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (1.0%) and White (0.7%). 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 Quyen most often in the Census?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest reported group for people named Quyen in the 2020 Census, accounting for 97.9% (5,017 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 Quyen in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Quyen a female name?
Yes, 88.9% of people registered as Quyen 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 Quyen still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Quyen 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 Quyen 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 Quyen as a first name?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.