Breanna
Torn between Breanna and another name? Compare them side by side →
Meaning
modern elaboration of Brian (traditionally 'noble, strong') with a feminine -anna ending
The story
Breanna is Brian given a daughter, the Irish root traditionally read as noble or strong, extended with the -anna ending that softened an entire generation of American coinages into lullabies. It enters the record in the 1970s alongside its sibling spellings Brianna and Briana, climbs quickly through the 1980s, and peaks across the 1990s and 2000s before the family's steep, shared decline set in. Breanna sits between its sisters in both spelling and fortune, permanently the middle child of the trio, which suits a name built on compromise. The formula was irresistible in its moment, a masculine classic feminized into three musical syllables, and the record shows precisely how completely one era embraced it and how firmly the next one let it rest.
How popular is Breanna around the world?
In the United States, 764 babies were named Breanna between 2020 and 2025. In South Australia, 3 girls were registered as Breanna in 2017.
Breanna is on the official records of the United States, South Australia and Canada.
United States
1 in 29,000
In the United States, 764 babies were named Breanna between 2020 and 2025.
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Breanna peaked in the 1990s and the 2000s in nearly equal measure.
Births with a Social Security record. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration
South Australia
1 in 6,1002017
In South Australia, 3 girls were registered as Breanna in 2017.
share of that year’s name registrations
Births registered in South Australia (not all of Australia) by first name and year of registration, 1944–2017, from the state’s Births, Deaths and Marriages registry, which publishes every name down to a single birth in capitals; a spelling its export repeats inside a year is counted once, and from 2018 only a top 100 is published, so the series ends at 2017. Source: Consumer and Business Services (South Australia), popular baby names
Canada
1 in 18,000
In Canada, 20 girls named Breanna were born in 2024, ranked 1,231st among girls that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from provincial and territorial vital statistics across Canada; any name-sex-year under 5 is excluded at source, and small Quebec counts carry a randomized adjustment made at source. Shares divide by Statistics Canada’s count of live births for the year; the 2024 count is preliminary. Source: Statistics Canada, first names at birth (table 17-10-0147-01)
Argentina
last on record 2021
Breanna is not on the 2024 record for Argentina, where small counts are withheld at source.
The count never rose above 2 in a year, too few to chart.
Given-name components of births in Argentina 2012–2024; national cells are lower bounds and no sex split is published. Source: RENAPER (Argentina), Dirección Nacional de Población, given names 2012-2024
England and Wales
last on record 2024
Breanna is not on the 2025 record for England and Wales, where spellings under 3 in a year are withheld at source.
share of that year’s name registrations
Birth registrations in England and Wales (not the whole UK); exact spellings are counted separately, and any spelling under 3 in a year is withheld at source. Source: Office for National Statistics, baby names in England and Wales
Ireland
last on record 2013
Breanna is not on the 2025 record for Ireland, where names under 3 in a year are withheld at source.
The count never rose above 7 in a year, too few to chart.
Exact registered spellings from Irish vital statistics; any name under 3 in a year is withheld at source, and accented spellings (fadas) are recorded reliably only from 2018. Source: Central Statistics Office (Ireland), Irish babies' names
Mexico City City
last on record 2020
Breanna is not on the 2022 record for Mexico City, where small counts are withheld at source.
The count never rose above 7 in a year, too few to chart.
Civil-registry acts in Mexico City by registration year. Counts are lower bounds (names under 6 in a month and borough are removed at source) and count name-instances, not people; compound names are split, so “Maria Jose” counts under each part. 2023, a partial extract through 3 Mar with no cell on record for this name, is excluded. Source: Registro Civil of Mexico City, open data portal, registered given names 2000-2023
New South Wales
outside the top 100
Breanna is not in the 2025 top 100 for New South Wales.
share of that year’s top-100 registrations
New South Wales (not all of Australia) publishes only each year’s 100 most popular names per sex, so a missing year means below that top 100, not rare. Source: NSW Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages, popular baby names
New Zealand
last on record 2010
Breanna is not on the 2025 record for New Zealand, where names under 10 in a year are excluded at source.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from New Zealand birth registrations, grouped by registration year; any name under 10 in a year is excluded at source. Shares divide by Stats NZ’s count of births registered to mothers living in New Zealand, under 1% below the registry’s own count. Source: Department of Internal Affairs (New Zealand), baby name popularity over time
Scotland
last on record 2021
Breanna is not on the 2024 record for Scotland, where spellings under 3 in total are suppressed at source.
The count never rose above 7 in a year, too few to chart.
Births registered in Scotland; different spellings count separately but accents are merged at source, and any spelling under 3 in total is suppressed. Source: National Records of Scotland, babies' first names
Not on the record in Spain, Puerto Rico and Poland: those registries withhold small counts, so rare uses may sit below their floors.
Not on the Chile record: nametree keeps spellings that reached 5 registrations in some year, so rarer uses are not shown. Not on the Montevideo record for 1940 to 2011: that registry withholds nothing, so this spelling was not given there in those years. Not on the France record: nametree keeps spellings that reached 20 births in some year, so rarer uses are not shown. Not on the Austria record for 1984 to 2025: Statistik Austria publishes every first name down to a single birth, so this name was not given there in those years (before 2010 the record covers babies with Austrian citizenship only). Not on Norway’s list: Statistics Norway lists only first names carried by 200 or more living people, so rarer names are not shown.
When you meet Breanna
Most people given the name Breanna in the United States were born between 1990 and 2009. The Breanna you meet today is most often in her 20s or 30s.
Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.
The Breanna deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Breanna truly comes from, how it traveled, and what a century of records reveals. If you have grown a tree on nametree, it also considers how Breanna fits with your family’s names and surname.
Does Breanna fit YOUR family?
nametree reads your family’s names and finds the ones that belong. Free, private, no ads.
Add Breanna to your family’s tree →