Chan
Meaning
moon; from Sanskrit chandra. Equally common as a family name, and since Khmer order puts the family name first, US refugee paperwork sometimes turned Chan family names into American first names
Popularity, 1890–2024
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Chan has stayed rare in US records the whole time: no peak decade to name.
See popularity in Brazil
Popularity in Brazil
218 people · the #23,913 first name in Brazil · about 1 in 1,000,000 · median age 61
Among people named Chan living in Brazil at the 2022 census, more were born in the 1950s than in any other decade.
Source: IBGE, Censo Demográfico 2022
When you meet Chan
Most people given the name Chan in the United States were born between 1960 and 1999. The Chan you meet today is most often in their 30s or 40s.
Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.
The Chan deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Chan 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 Chan fits with your family’s names and surname.
Keep exploring
Khmer and Cambodian baby names · Short names · Gender-neutral names
Does Chan fit YOUR family?
nametree reads your family’s names and finds the ones that belong. Free, private, no ads.
Add Chan to your family’s tree →