Han
Masculine · “Depends entirely on the source”
Han is given to both — 768 boys and 646 girls since 1880. See Han as a girl nameSee other names given to both
Han is three different names wearing one spelling: a Korean and Chinese surname of great antiquity, the Dutch short form of Johannes, and — since 1977 — a smuggler with a Wookiee. Its American peak in the early 1980s is not a coincidence.
How old is the name Han?
Han first appears in US birth records in 1969 — 56 years ago. The typical Han alive today was born around 2007, making them about 18 years old. About 700 people named Han are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Han most popular?
Han peaked in 1982, reaching #2972 nationally. Today it ranks #5208, 2,236 places below that high. See the whole 1982 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
Origin, sound and short forms
The story of Han
The state of Han was one of the seven warring kingdoms swallowed by Qin in 230 BC, and the Han dynasty that followed gave its name to the majority Chinese ethnicity and to the characters themselves. As a surname it is one of the commonest in Korea and widespread in China. The Dutch Han is unrelated: a clipping of Johannes, ordinary in the Netherlands through the twentieth century. In American records the name is scarce until Star Wars opened in May 1977; Han Solo made the syllable familiar to every American child, and the given name's peak in the early 1980s falls between the first film and Return of the Jedi.
Meaningscholars disagree
Depends entirely on the source
Chinese Hán 韓 is the name of an ancient state and one of the hundred family surnames; Hàn 漢 is the dynasty and the word for the Chinese ethnic majority, from the Han River. Korean 한 covers several hanja including both of those and a native Korean word meaning great or one. Dutch and German Han is a short form of Johannes, the Hebrew Yôḥānān, God is gracious. None of these is the same name, and the spelling does not distinguish them.
Pronouncing Han
HAHN
One syllable with an open a, rhyming with on rather than with man. Korean and Chinese both give it a level quality that English does not reproduce.
Nicknames for Han
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
- 1969
- Most boys named
- 201830 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #2972reached in 1982
- Change vs 2024
- −18.2%18 in 2025, from 22
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.
Han in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- 한 in Korean — transliteration
- 韓 in Chinese — transliteration
- Han in Dutch — same name
- Hann in German — related form
Strongest US states over the last decade: California, New York, Florida.
Hans among us
people named Han are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 94,893 born in 2025 was named Han
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 Avrom test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Han's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Avrom climbed just as high around 1934, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Avrom's path sketches the road Han is walking now.
Han 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
Han beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Han in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- One syllable and three letters, about as portable as a name gets.
- It works as a real name in Korean, Chinese, Dutch and German.
- Everyone can say it after hearing it once.
- Star Wars is the first association for most Americans and will be for a long time.
- In Korea and China it is overwhelmingly a surname, not a given name.
- English speakers often flatten the vowel to rhyme with man, which is wrong in every source language.
Nobody names a baby alone.
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What they receive
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Han
Masculine · #5208 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Hans are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 700 people named Han are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Han in 2025?
- Han ranks #5208 among US boy names in 2025, with 18 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Han?
- About 1 in every 94,893 US boys born in 2025 was named Han — 18 in all.
- Will my child share the name Han with classmates?
- Han will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Han
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Rodger#5208 · Eusebio#5208 · Boy#5208 · Randal#5208 · Gable#5208 · Jessy#5208 · Kelby#5208 · Jens#5208
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Han? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Han and another name?
See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.
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Weighing a whole shortlist? Add the rest in the builder, or settle it with a bracket.
Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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