Vandan
A masculine Indian name derived from Sanskrit meaning "salutation" or "reverence".
Name Census estimates that about 64 living Americans carry the first name Vandan. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Vandan today is around 14 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Vandan births was 2009 (11 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Vandan. 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
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Vandan. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
64
~ 1 in 5,355,537 Americans
Peak year
2009
11 babies that year
Average age
14
years old
2023 SSA rank
#14,032
Tracked since 2002
Census
Vandan in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 174 people with the first name Vandan, which placed it at #41,801 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
#41,801
National first-name rank
People counted
174
174 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Asian and Pacific Islander
90.8% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Vandan
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Vandan is Asian/Pacific Islander at 90.8%. The next largest groups are White (5.7%) and Black (1.1%). 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 Vandan 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 Vandan at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander90.8% · 158
- White5.7% · 10
- Black or African American1.1% · 2
- Two or more races1.1% · 2
- Hispanic or Latino0.6% · 1
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 1
Popularity
Vandan: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Vandan from the 2000s through to the 2020s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 39 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2000s peak, Vandan remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Vandan 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 Vandan 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 Vandan
The name Vandan originates from the Sanskrit language and has its roots in ancient Indian culture. It is derived from the word "vandana," which means "salutation" or "respectful greeting." The name first appeared in Hindu religious texts and scriptures, where it was often used to express reverence and honor towards deities or elders.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Vandan can be found in the Vedas, the oldest scriptures of Hinduism, dating back to around 1500-500 BCE. In these texts, the term "vandana" was frequently used in rituals and prayers to invoke blessings and seek divine favor.
Throughout the centuries, the name Vandan has been associated with several notable figures in Indian history. One of the most prominent was Vandan Mishra, a renowned Sanskrit scholar and philosopher who lived during the 8th century CE. He was known for his contributions to the study of grammar, logic, and Vedic literature.
Another historical figure bearing the name Vandan was Vandan Pathak, a celebrated poet and writer from the 17th century. His works, which often explored themes of love, devotion, and spirituality, are still widely read and appreciated today.
In more recent times, Vandan Shiva was a prominent Indian independence activist who played a significant role in the struggle against British colonial rule in the early 20th century. He was born in 1885 and dedicated his life to the cause of Indian freedom.
Vandan Mathai, born in 1922, was a distinguished Indian diplomat and statesman. He served as the Indian Ambassador to several countries and played a crucial role in shaping India's foreign policy during the post-independence era.
One of the most famous individuals with the name Vandan is Vandan Kaur, an acclaimed Indian classical dancer and choreographer born in 1938. She is widely regarded as one of the leading exponents of Kathak, a major form of classical Indian dance, and has received numerous awards and accolades for her contributions to the art form.
While the name Vandan has its roots in ancient Indian culture, it has transcended geographical boundaries and is now used in various parts of the world, particularly among communities with Indian or South Asian origins. Its meaning and significance, however, remain closely tied to its Sanskrit heritage, reflecting a deep sense of respect, reverence, and spiritual connection.
People
Vandan + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Vandan as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with V
Other first names starting with V with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Vandan: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Vandan?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 64 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Vandan 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 5,355,537 US residents.
Is Vandan a common name?
We classify Vandan as "Very Rare". It ranks above 58% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 65 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Vandan most popular?
The single biggest year for Vandan was 2009, when 11 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Vandan 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 Vandan in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 174 people with the name Vandan, or 0.06 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #41,801 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 Vandan 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 Vandan?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Vandan leans strongly male. 166 people counted with this name were male (92.7%), compared with 13 female bearers (7.3%). 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 Vandan?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Vandan is Asian/Pacific Islander at 90.8%. The next largest groups are White (5.7%) and Black (1.1%). 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 Vandan most often in the Census?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest reported group for people named Vandan in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.8% (158 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 Vandan in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Vandan a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Vandan 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 Vandan still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Vandan 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 Vandan 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 share the name Vandan?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.