Sagan
An Iranian masculine name meaning "bowl" or "wine cup".
Name Census estimates that about 1,137 living Americans carry the first name Sagan. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 63.5% of registrations being male. The average person named Sagan today is around 15 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Sagan births was 2018 (83 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Sagan. 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
- • Sagan sits in rare territory as a truly gender-neutral name, given to boys and girls in near-equal numbers.
- • Sagan is a relatively new arrival in the SSA data. The average bearer is just 15 years old, meaning it gained most of its traction in the last two decades.
People living today
1.1K
~ 1 in 301,455 Americans
Peak year
2018
83 babies that year
Average age
15
years old
2024 SSA rank
#4,524
Tracked since 1987
Census
Sagan in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 996 people with the first name Sagan, which placed it at #12,471 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
#12,471
National first-name rank
People counted
996
996 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.3
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
71.7% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Sagan
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Sagan is White at 71.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (10.9%) and Two or More Races (10.1%). 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 Sagan 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 Sagan at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White71.7% · 714
- Hispanic or Latino10.9% · 109
- Two or more races10.1% · 101
- Asian and Pacific Islander4.1% · 41
- Black or African American2.4% · 24
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 7
Gender
Gender distribution for Sagan
Sagan is one of the more evenly split names in the SSA data. Of the 1,152 total registrations, 731 (63.5%) were male and 421 (36.5%) were female.
Sagan as a male name
- Ranked #4,524 in 2024
- 23 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2018 (63 births)
Sagan as a female name
- Ranked #13,174 in 2024
- 7 female births in 2024
- Peak: 1988 (65 births)
2020 Census snapshot
The 2020 Census sex table shows Sagan on both sides of the split. Of the 989 people counted with this name, 611 were male (61.8%) and 378 were female (38.2%).
Popularity
Sagan: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Sagan from the 1980s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 600 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Sagan remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Sagan 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 Sagan during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Sagans live
The SSA's state-level files cover 7 states and territories. California, Texas, Florida recorded the most babies named Sagan, while Virginia, Utah, Tennessee recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 16 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Sagan
The name Sagan has its origins in the Sanskrit language, which was widely used in ancient India and the surrounding regions. It is derived from the Sanskrit word "sāgara," which means "ocean" or "sea." This connection suggests that the name may have been initially given to individuals living near large bodies of water or coastal regions.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Sagan can be found in the Mahabharata, a revered Indian epic poem dating back to the 8th or 9th century BCE. In this text, Sagan is mentioned as the name of a minor character, a king from a region near the sea.
During the medieval period, the name Sagan gained popularity among certain Buddhist communities in South and Southeast Asia. It was often given to individuals who embraced spiritual teachings or pursued a life of contemplation, perhaps drawing inspiration from the vast and profound nature of the ocean.
In the 16th century, a notable figure named Sagan Pandit lived in present-day Bangladesh. He was a renowned scholar and poet who contributed significantly to the literary traditions of the region. His works, written in the Bengali language, explored themes of love, spirituality, and the natural world.
Fast forward to the 20th century, and one of the most famous individuals to bear the name Sagan was the American astronomer and science communicator Carl Sagan (1934-1996). Known for his influential works like "Cosmos" and "The Pale Blue Dot," Sagan played a crucial role in popularizing science and fostering a deeper appreciation for the universe and our place within it.
Another notable Sagan was the Russian-American biochemist Esther M. Sagan (1927-2022), who made significant contributions to the field of molecular biology and the study of RNA viruses. Her research helped advance our understanding of viral replication and the development of anti-viral therapies.
In the realm of literature, the Turkish writer Sagan Kemal (1905-1964) gained recognition for his novels and short stories that explored the complexities of modern life and the human experience. His works often delved into themes of identity, societal change, and the tensions between tradition and modernity.
These are just a few examples of individuals throughout history who have carried the name Sagan. While its origins can be traced back to ancient India and the Sanskrit language, the name has transcended cultural and geographical boundaries, resonating with people from diverse backgrounds and eras.
People
Sagan + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Sagan as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with S
Other first names starting with S with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Sagan: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Sagan?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,137 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Sagan 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 301,455 US residents.
Is Sagan a common name?
We classify Sagan as "Rare". It ranks above 90.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,152 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Sagan most popular?
The single biggest year for Sagan was 2018, when 83 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Sagan is about 15 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Sagan in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 996 people with the name Sagan, or 0.33 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #12,471 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 Sagan 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 Sagan?
The 2020 Census sex table shows Sagan on both sides of the split. Of the 989 people counted with this name, 611 were male (61.8%) and 378 were female (38.2%). 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 Sagan?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Sagan is White at 71.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (10.9%) and Two or More Races (10.1%). 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 Sagan most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Sagan in the 2020 Census, accounting for 71.7% (714 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 Sagan in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Sagan a male name?
Yes, 63.5% of people registered as Sagan 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 Sagan still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Sagan 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 Sagan 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 the name Sagan?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.