Susan
The story
Susan is the English shortening of Susanna, from the Hebrew shoshan, the lily, a word so old it may descend from the Egyptian term for the lotus. The biblical Susanna was falsely accused and saved by the prophet Daniel's clever cross-examination, a story that kept the name alive across centuries; Susan became the standard spelling in the 1700s, and Susan B. Anthony gave it a place in American history. Then came the bloom. After five quiet decades, Susan surged in the 1940s and owned the 1950s and 1960s on both sides of the Atlantic; for a generation of classrooms it was simply what girls were named. It faded almost as fast as it rose. That is what lilies do: a spectacular season, then the long rest before some spring returns.
Susan around the world
One shared root links 10 names across 5 languages.
Shared root: from Hebrew Shoshannah "lily", via Greek Sousanna
The constellation
More branches
Popularity, 1890–2024
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Susan peaked in the 1950s.
See popularity in Brazil
Popularity in Brazil
3,456 people · the #3,530 first name in Brazil · about 1 in 58,824 · median age 34
Among people named Susan living in Brazil at the 2022 census, more were born in the 1980s than in any other decade.
The census also counted 61 born between 2020 and August 2022, too recent a span to chart.
Source: IBGE, Censo Demográfico 2022
When you meet Susan
Most people given the name Susan in the United States were born between 1950 and 1969. The Susan 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.
The Susan deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Susan 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 Susan fits with your family’s names and surname.
Where Susan travels
Vietnamese American · a classic refugee-generation English name
Chinese American · a steady mid-century classic
Keep exploring
Nicknames for Susan · Vietnamese American baby names · Chinese American baby names · Iconic movie character names
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