Broden
Masculine
Since 1980 the single most productive opening in American boys' naming has been br-. Brandon, Brayden, Brody, Bryson, Braxton, Brennan, Broden: one consonant cluster has generated more new American men's names in forty years than any other sound in the language.
How old is the name Broden?
Broden first appears in US birth records in 1993 — 32 years ago. The typical Broden alive today was born around 2009, making them about 16 years old. About 1,600 people named Broden are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Broden most popular?
Broden peaked in 2008, reaching #1240 nationally. Today it ranks #6446, 5,206 places below that high. See the whole 2008 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
Origin, sound and short forms
Our story of Broden
Sounds go in and out of fashion the way names do, and br- had a spectacular run. Brian and Bruce were established American names by the 1960s; Brian and Brenda gave way to Brandon and Brittany in the 1980s; and by the 2000s the cluster had detached from any particular name and become a productive opening in its own right, generating Braxton, Brayden, Bryce, Brock, Braden and Broden. What makes br- so useful is that English allows it freely at the start of a word, it is short, and it carries no existing associations to overcome. Broden takes that opening and the -den ending from the largest boys' rhyme family in American history, and the o in the middle is the one part that is uncommon, which is why the name stayed rare; its best year is 2008.
Meaningnot established
Not established
No inherited etymology. Broden is built from the br- onset and the -den ending established by Aiden, Braden and Hayden. Some members of that family have real sources, Aidan from Irish aodh, fire, and Hayden from an English place name; this one does not. It also coincides with a genuine Swedish surname, Broden, which is unrelated.
Pronouncing Broden
BROH-den
Two syllables with the stress at the front and the second reduced. The o is long, as in Brody, not short as in Broderick.
Nicknames for Broden
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1993
- Most boys named
- 2008140 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1240reached in 2008
- Change vs 2024
- −13.3%13 in 2025, from 15
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Broden in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Brodin in English — spelling variant
- Broden in Swedish — related form
Strongest US states over the last decade: Pennsylvania, Minnesota.
Brodens among us
people named Broden are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 131,390 born in 2025 was named Broden
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Johnmichael test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Broden's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Johnmichael climbed just as high around 1988, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Johnmichael's path sketches the road Broden is walking now.
Broden sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Broden beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Broden in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- Both halves are completely familiar, so it never sounds invented.
- Brody is available as an everyday substitute that needs no explaining.
- Six letters and no spelling ambiguity.
- Brodin, Broderick and Braden are all nearby and get confused.
- The clip Bro is a piece of American slang.
- The name carries no meaning to pass on.
Nobody names a baby alone.
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Broden
Masculine · #6446 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Brodens are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 1,600 people named Broden are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Broden in 2025?
- Broden ranks #6446 among US boy names in 2025, with 13 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Broden?
- About 1 in every 131,390 US boys born in 2025 was named Broden — 13 in all.
- Will my child share the name Broden with classmates?
- Broden will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Broden
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Rollie#6446 · Billie#6446 · Worth#6446 · Blas#6446 · Starling#6446 · Alvis#6446 · Elwyn#6446 · Rollin#6446
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Broden? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Broden and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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