Tran
Feminine · “precious”
Tran is given to both — 559 girls and 128 boys since 1880. See other names given to both
Tran reaches American records as a girl's name and, less often, a boy's, but in Vietnam the same letters are two different words: Trần, one of the most common family names, and Trân, a girl's name meaning precious.
How old is the name Tran?
Tran first appears in US birth records in 1977 — 48 years ago. The typical Tran alive today was born around 1993, making them about 32 years old. About 500 people named Tran are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Tran most popular?
Tran peaked in 1985, reaching #3328 nationally. See the whole 1985 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From Trân / Trần to Tran
The story of Tran
The Trần dynasty ruled Vietnam in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries and turned back three Mongol invasions, the last ended when the general Trần Hưng Đạo drove stakes into the bed of the Bạch Đằng River so that the Mongol fleet was caught on them as the tide fell. Trần is still among the commonest Vietnamese surnames. Trân, meaning precious, is a separate word used for daughters. Families from Vietnam brought both to America, where the marks were lost and the two met in one spelling.
Meaningscholars disagree
precious, as the given name Trân
As a given name, Trân means precious, as in trân châu, pearl. Trần, with a different tone, is a family name. American records drop the marks, so the two cannot be told apart.
How the name formed
- Trân / Trần
- Tran
Related forms: Trân · Trần
Pronouncing Tran
CHUN
In northern Vietnamese, close to CHUN; in the south, TRUNG. Most Americans say TRAN, rhyming with man.
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
- 1977
- Most girls named
- 199328 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #3328reached in 1985
- Change vs 2015
- 0.0%5 in 2017, from 5
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.
Tran in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Trân in Vietnamese — same name
- Trần in Vietnamese — related form
Trans among us
people named Tran are estimated to be alive in the US today
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
Questions parents actually ask
Fashion outlook
Tran sits outside the current charts, and that is its own kind of answer: naming cycles can only date the names they carried up. A name this rare has no decade stamped on it — it cannot go out of fashion, because it was never in.
Based on 146 years of naming cycles. How we read them
The trade-off
- Its meaning as a given name, precious, is lovely.
- It is short and simple to write.
- Many will assume it is a surname, since Tran is one of the most common Vietnamese family names.
- Most children given it are girls; a boy named Tran may be taken for a girl by Vietnamese speakers.
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What they receive
Someone added a name to your list
Tran
Feminine
Frequently asked
- How many Trans are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 500 people named Tran are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Tran in 2025?
- Tran is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 girl names.
- Will my child share the name Tran with classmates?
- Tran will almost certainly be the only one in school.
More T names
The most-given names starting with T, all years combined.
Teresa#908 · Theresa#1548 · Tiffany#878 · Tammy#3645 · Taylor#403 · Tina#2778 · Tracy#2153 · Thelma#4661
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Tran? See the current top 100.
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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