Nathen
Masculine · “he gave”
Nathen is a spelling of Nathan, a Hebrew name that is a verb in the past tense — he gave — and it belongs to the prophet who tells David a story to trap him.
How old is the name Nathen?
Nathen first appears in US birth records in 1902 — 123 years ago. The typical Nathen alive today was born around 2001, making them about 24 years old. About 5,700 people named Nathen are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Nathen most popular?
Nathen peaked in 2004, reaching #767 nationally. Today it ranks #3949, 3,182 places below that high. See the whole 2004 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From Natan to Nathen
The story of Nathen
Nathan the prophet confronts David after the affair with Bathsheba by telling him a parable about a poor man's lamb, letting David condemn the man in it, and then saying you are the man — one of the most economical pieces of narrative in the Hebrew Bible. English Protestants took the name after the Reformation. Nathen is a modern American respelling.
Meaning
he gave
From Hebrew natan, to give; the name is the bare verb, with the giver understood to be God. Jonathan and Nathaniel are the same verb with the divine name attached at either end.
How the name formed
- Natan
- Nathan
- Nathen
Related forms: Nathan · Natan · Nathan
Pronouncing Nathen
NAY-thun
Two syllables, first stressed. Nathen and Nathan are said identically.
Nicknames for Nathen
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
- 1902
- Most boys named
- 2006255 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #767reached in 2004
- Change vs 2023
- +28.6%27 in 2025, from 21
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.
Nathen in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Nathan in English — spelling variant
- Natan in Hebrew — same name
- Nathan in French — same name
Strongest US states over the last decade: California, Texas, Florida.
Nathens among us
people named Nathen are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 63,262 born in 2025 was named Nathen
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 Carnell test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Nathen's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Carnell climbed just as high around 1955, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Carnell's path sketches the road Nathen is walking now.
Nathen 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
Where Nathen is headed
Nathen is easing off slowly — about 26% fewer babies a year by 2030 if the trend continues.
Medium confidence — fitted on official counts through 2025.
A damped-trend projection of the official birth data — a sketch of momentum, not a promise. Every name's forecast, ranked.
Nathen beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Nathen in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- A settled meaning that is as plain as a name can be.
- Nate is a complete short form in very current use.
- A documented prophet with a genuinely brilliant scene behind him.
- Nathan is the standard spelling and will be written for him constantly.
- The sound is very widely used, so a classroom may hold more than one.
- The e adds nothing to the sound and invites correction.
Nobody names a baby alone.
Put Nathen to the vote.
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What they receive
Someone added a name to your list
Nathen
Masculine · #3949 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Nathens are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 5,700 people named Nathen are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Nathen in 2025?
- Nathen ranks #3949 among US boy names in 2025, with 27 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Nathen?
- About 1 in every 63,262 US boys born in 2025 was named Nathen — 27 in all.
- Will my child share the name Nathen with classmates?
- Nathen will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Nathen
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Stewart#3949 · Tillman#3949 · Ashley#3949 · Alfonzo#3949 · Blane#3949 · Brayton#3949 · Omega#3949 · Rufus#3949
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Nathen? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Nathen 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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