Head to head · Boys' names
Adan vs Kasen
#482 vs #483 in 2025 · both holding its place on the charts
Adan is a whisker ahead (#482 vs #483 in 2025) and both are holding its place on the charts. The records will not split these two — sound, story and your own last name will.
Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
The tale of the tape
On the charts, Adan leads 5 measures of 6; Kasen leads 0.
Ranks, counts and years are measured in the official US birth record; the classroom and living figures are estimates computed from it. The dot marks the side each measure favours on the charts — more common, not better.
What the records say
146 years of US births, drawn on one scale
Two curves, one scale
Who owned which decade
- 1900s: Adan #1205, Kasen — — Adan higher
- 1910s: Adan #2057, Kasen — — Adan higher
- 1920s: Adan #1319, Kasen — — Adan higher
- 1930s: Adan #1038, Kasen — — Adan higher
- 1940s: Adan #939, Kasen — — Adan higher
- 1950s: Adan #989, Kasen — — Adan higher
- 1960s: Adan #847, Kasen — — Adan higher
- 1970s: Adan #689, Kasen — — Adan higher
- 1980s: Adan #550, Kasen — — Adan higher
- 1990s: Adan #518, Kasen #4210 — Adan higher
- 2000s: Adan #361, Kasen #1237 — Adan higher
- 2010s: Adan #386, Kasen #478 — Adan higher
- 2020s: Adan #470, Kasen #514 — Adan higher
Adan stood higher in every recorded decade — 13 of 13.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Adan | Kasen |
|---|---|---|
| 1900s | #1205 | — |
| 1910s | #2057 | — |
| 1920s | #1319 | — |
| 1930s | #1038 | — |
| 1940s | #939 | — |
| 1950s | #989 | — |
| 1960s | #847 | — |
| 1970s | #689 | — |
| 1980s | #550 | — |
| 1990s | #518 | #4210 |
| 2000s | #361 | #1237 |
| 2010s | #386 | #478 |
| 2020s | #470 | #514 |
Average national rank across each decade. A dash means the name sat outside the recorded top of that decade.
The names themselves
Meaning, roots, sound and the people who carried each
Where each name comes from
Adan
man, human — from Hebrew, tied to the word for earth or ground
The Hebrew adam means "man, human being" and plays on adamah, "ground, soil" — the wordplay is right there in the opening chapters of Genesis.
Adam (Hebrew) → Adam (Greek and Latin) → Adán (Spanish) → Adan
How it traveled
The name begins as Hebrew Adam, the first human in Genesis, whose name echoes adamah, the ground. It traveled through Greek and Latin translations of the Bible into every Christian language of Europe, and through the Quran, where Adam is the first prophet, into the Muslim world.
Kasen
Not established
No meaning has been established for Kasen. What is documented is where it sits: it appears in United States records only in recent decades, alongside the closely related spellings Cason, Casen and Kason, and within the broader American habit of writing familiar sounds with a K.
Our story of Kasen — where the record runs out
Some names arrive with a lineage; Kasen arrived with a sound. It shares its ending with Mason and Jason, its first beat with Casey and Kason, and its initial K with the whole run of American names that swapped a hard C for something a little brighter.
Where a reading is contested the note says so — this page does not turn a guess into a fact. The chain is each name's recorded forms, oldest first; the story is its opening, told in full on the name's own page.
Out loud, and in short
Adan
ah-DAHN
That is the Spanish stress, on the second syllable. In English-speaking settings many Adans answer to AY-dan, which sits close to the familiar Aiden. Both are in real use, so it is worth deciding early which one your family will say.
- Adancito — Spanish affectionate diminutive, used within families rather than in formal settings
- Dan — Informal English clipping; also stands alone as a given name in its own right
Kasen
KAY-sen
Two syllables, stress on the first, rhyming with Jason and Mason. A less common reading gives the first syllable a short a, KASS-en, so it is worth saying it once for people who see it written before they hear it.
- Kase — The most natural short form, clipping the second syllable; used informally, and occasionally given on its own.
- Kay — Informal, from the first sound; more often heard within families than outside them.
- K.J. — Works only when the middle name begins with J; common pattern in American nickname-making.
Is it right for you
The differences that decide it, laid out by what you want
Choose by what you want
Choose Adan if you want…
On the measures here, the records do not separate Adan from Kasen.
Choose Kasen if you want…
On the measures here, the records do not separate Kasen from Adan.
Each line is a measured difference between the two names — a rank, a count, a recorded form — never a judgement of either. Save the one that answers your question; it lands on your shortlist.
The trade-offs, name by name
Adan
Strengths
- Short, four letters, no silent letters — easy to write down the first time it is heard.
- Works in both Spanish and English without translation or adjustment, which matters in bilingual families.
- Belongs to one of the longest documented name lines in existence, shared by Jewish, Christian and Muslim tradition.
To consider
- Two pronunciations circulate — ah-DAHN and AY-dan — so a mild correction may become a lifelong habit. Some families choose the accented Adán on the birth certificate to steer it.
- The accent itself is a decision. Adán is the standard Spanish spelling, but American forms, databases and airline tickets tend to strip diacritics anyway.
- Aiden, Aidan and Ayden are all widely known, so expect the occasional misspelling in that direction from people who have only heard the name spoken.
Kasen
Strengths
- Sounds instantly familiar to American ears because it rhymes with names everyone already knows, so no one has to be taught how to say it.
- Short, two syllables, stress on the first — easy to call across a yard and easy for a child to write early.
- Has stayed at a steady level on the record for a few decades rather than spiking once and disappearing.
To consider
- The spelling will need saying. Cason, Casen, Kason and Kasen are all in use, so expect to spell it at the pharmacy and on the phone for life.
- The spelling is uncommon but the sound is not — a Kasen may share a classroom with Mason, Jaxon or Kayden and hear his name half-turned toward more than once.
- No meaning has been established, so if a documented meaning matters to you, this name will not supply one.
Documented properties of each name — how it spells, travels and shortens — not opinions about the child.
With your last name
Say both in full. The notes are facts about letters and sound — a rhyme, a shared initial, the monogram — not a verdict on either name.
Type a last name to hear Adan and Kasen in full.
Weighing the whole shortlist? Run the full comparison — up to eight names with your last name, initials, classroom projections and a printable report.
Decide together
Nobody names a baby alone
Still torn between Adan and Kasen?
Put both to the vote.
One link to your partner, your parents, your sister. Each of them gets the two names, a one-tap answer and room to say why — and every reply lands in one place.
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More than two in the running? Settle it with a bracket or run the full comparison with your last name.
More head-to-heads
Same measures, different pair. Sixty more are dealt daily in the arena.
Adan or Kasen — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Adan or Kasen?
- Adan, in 2025: Adan ranked #482 with 625 babies; Kasen ranked #483 with 622 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Adan or Kasen?
- Neither is rising. Over the last five years Adan moved down 9 places; Kasen moved down 7 places.
- Which is the older name, Adan or Kasen?
- Adan entered the US charts in 1904; Kasen entered the US charts in 1992. On the American record, Adan is the older name.
- How many people are named Adan and Kasen?
- About 29,500 people named Adan are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 11,500 people named Kasen are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Adans or Kasens in the classroom?
- Adan will almost certainly be the only one in school. Kasen will almost certainly be the only one in school.
US figures from the Social Security Administration, 1880–2025. Votes are battle voters on this site, not the birth record. Data & methodology
Keep playing
Sixty more head-to-heads are dealt in the arena every day — or line up Adan, Kasen and the rest of your shortlist with your last name in one printable report.
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