Nan
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Meaning
a common Thai girls' call-name; matches the English Nan exactly in sound and spelling, and is also a northern Thai province and river
The formal names behind Nan
Nan is an established short form of each of these names.
Anne · Hebrew origin · variant of Hannah, meaning 'grace, favor' in Hebrew
Anna · Hebrew origin · "grace, favor," the Greek and Latin form of Hannah that spread wherever Christianity went; empresses of Russia, a prophetess in the Gospel of Luke, and centuries of quiet European use. The plainest spelling of one of the world's most shared names
Hannah · Hebrew origin · "grace, favor," from Channah, the mother who prayed for a child and gave the Bible one of its tenderest stories; a Puritan mainstay revived in the 1980s and 90s to the American top five. A palindrome, warm from either direction
How popular is Nan around the world?
In the United States, 6 babies were named Nan between 2020 and 2025. In Spain, 83 residents are named Nan, ranked 9,054th among women, with a mean age of 36.1 years.
Nan is on the official records of the United States, Spain and Brazil.
United States
1 in 3.6M
In the United States, 6 babies were named Nan between 2020 and 2025.
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Nan peaked in the 1890s and the 1950s in nearly equal measure.
Births with a Social Security record. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration
Spain
1 in 340,000
In Spain, 83 residents are named Nan, ranked 9,054th among women, with a mean age of 36.1 years.
In Spain, 50 residents are named Nan, ranked 14,563rd among men, with a mean age of 36.4 years.
Residents of Spain on 1 January 2025. Spain publishes how old a name’s living bearers are, not a birth series, so there is no year chart. Source: INE (Spain), Censo de Población anual, 1 January 2025
Brazil
At the 2022 census, 49 people in Brazil were named Nan, ranked 67,613th, with a median age of 32.
People alive and resident in Brazil at the 2022 census, a living-population count, not births; names under 20 are withheld at source. Source: IBGE, Censo Demográfico 2022
England and Wales
last on record 2023
Nan is not on the 2025 record for England and Wales, where spellings under 3 in a year are withheld at source.
The count never rose above 3 in a year, too few to chart.
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 2024
Nan is not on the 2025 record for Ireland, where names under 3 in a year are withheld at source.
The count never rose above 5 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
South Australia
last on record 1947
Nan is not on the 2017 record for South Australia, whose registry publishes every name given that year.
The count never rose above 1 in a year, too few to chart.
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
Not on the record in Mexico City, Argentina, Puerto Rico, Canada, New Zealand, Scotland 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 Nan
Most people given the name Nan in the United States were born between 1940 and 1969. The Nan you meet today is most often in her 60s or 70s.
Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.
Keep exploring
The Nan deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Nan 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 Nan fits with your family’s names and surname.
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