Yann
A French masculine name derived from the Biblical name Jonah, meaning "dove".
Name Census estimates that about 331 living Americans carry the first name Yann. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Yann today is around 17 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Yann births was 2006 (20 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Yann. 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 Yann with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
331
~ 1 in 1,035,512 Americans
Peak year
2006
20 babies that year
Average age
17
years old
2024 SSA rank
#9,815
Tracked since 1984
Census
Yann in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 886 people with the first name Yann, which placed it at #13,580 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
#13,580
National first-name rank
People counted
886
886 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.3
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
52.5% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Yann
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Yann is White at 52.5%. The next largest groups are Black (20.2%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (12.0%). 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 Yann 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 Yann at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White52.5% · 465
- Black or African American20.2% · 179
- Asian and Pacific Islander12.0% · 106
- Hispanic or Latino10.7% · 95
- Two or more races4.6% · 41
Popularity
Yann: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Yann from the 1980s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 122 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2000s peak, Yann remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Yann 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 Yann during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Yanns live
The SSA's state-level files cover 3 states and territories. Florida, Massachusetts, California recorded the most babies named Yann, while California, Massachusetts, Florida recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 6 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Yann
The given name Yann has its origins in the Breton language, spoken in the region of Brittany in northwestern France. It is derived from the Celtic root "Iann" or "Ian", meaning "God is gracious" or "gift from God". The name can be traced back to the early medieval period and was particularly popular among the Breton people.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Yann comes from the 6th century Breton legend of St. Yann Venniou, also known as St. John the Venerable. He was a revered figure in Brittany, renowned for his piety and miracles. The veneration of St. Yann contributed to the widespread use of the name among the Breton populace.
In the 9th century, the name Yann appeared in the Cartulary of Redon, a collection of medieval charters and documents from the Redon Abbey in Brittany. This historical record provides evidence of the name's usage during this time period.
Throughout history, several notable figures have borne the name Yann. One such individual was Yann Fouere (1468-1501), a Breton poet and writer celebrated for his works in the Breton language. Another was Yann Kadour (1589-1670), a renowned Breton-language playwright and author of the famous work "Buhez Mabion Izrael" (Life of the Sons of Israel).
In the realm of religion, Yann de Gamalerio (1625-1666) was a French Jesuit missionary who served in Canada and is known for his work among the Native American tribes. Additionally, Yann Ghyr (1643-1697) was a Breton priest and scholar who made significant contributions to the study of the Breton language and its literature.
Moving into the modern era, Yann Martel (born 1963) is a notable Canadian author best known for his novel "Life of Pi", which won the prestigious Man Booker Prize in 2002. Yann Tiersen (born 1970) is a French composer and musician, renowned for his work on the soundtrack of the film "Amélie".
These examples illustrate the enduring presence of the name Yann throughout history, rooted in its Breton origins and carried forth by individuals who have left their mark in various fields, from literature and religion to music and the arts.
People
Yann + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Yann as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with Y
Other first names starting with Y with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Yann: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Yann?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 331 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Yann 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 1,035,512 US residents.
Is Yann a common name?
We classify Yann as "Very Rare". It ranks above 80.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 335 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Yann most popular?
The single biggest year for Yann was 2006, when 20 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Yann is about 17 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Yann in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 886 people with the name Yann, or 0.29 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #13,580 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 Yann 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 Yann?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Yann leans strongly male. 807 people counted with this name were male (91.6%), compared with 74 female bearers (8.4%). 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 Yann?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Yann is White at 52.5%. The next largest groups are Black (20.2%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (12.0%). 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 Yann most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Yann in the 2020 Census, accounting for 52.5% (465 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 Yann in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Yann a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Yann 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 Yann still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Yann 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 Yann 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 Americans are named Yann?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.