Given name & surname
An
“one who is peaceful”
An is used as a given name and a surname. One Chinese interpretation is “one who is peaceful.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
One Chinese interpretation is “one who is peaceful.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is Chinese.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1946. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
An through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 2,519
- 1,126 boys · 1,393 girls
- Most popular year
- 2016
- 73 babies
- 2025
- 61
- #3,983 for girls · #4,142 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −15%
- Easing
Boys, girls and both
The balance of boys and girls given this name has shifted over time. Recent births are 42% boys.
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 36 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 3,983 among girls’ names. Average annual use for girls was 9.8% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. It also appeared in 25 birth records for boys in 2025. In 2025, California had the largest reported state-level birth count for girls with this name (9). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 10,800 as a first name in 2020; 9,387 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
An’s family of names
In Japanese usage, An is a Roman-alphabet rendering of 行. An is a Roman-alphabet rendering of 𐽰𐽰𐽺. In Japanese usage, An as a surname is a Roman-alphabet rendering of 庵.
Inner ring: spellings · outer: across languages.
Spellings & scripts 5
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 4
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
People named An
- Nguyễn Hữu AnColonel-general of People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN), Commander of PAVN forces in the Battle of Ia Drang 19651926–1995
- An NakaharaJapanese manga artistborn 1969
- An PierléBelgian singerborn 1974
- An Van Riecyclistborn 1974
- Jin AnSouth Korean basketball player (born 1996)
- An TranVietnamese-American poker playerborn 1952
- An VannieuwenhuyseBelgian bobsledderborn 1991
- An HermansBelgian politician (born 1944)
- An Antane-KapeshCanadian writer1926–2004
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Appears in
Similar names
If you love An, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Haru
“daughter born in the spnng” · “born during the spring”
62% boys · 38% girls
Anh
“one who offers safety and peace”
34% boys · 66% girls
Yuki
“woman of the snow” · “man of the snow; one who is lucky”
31% boys · 69% girls
Aly
“the son of a noble” · “the great one; one who is exalted”
26% boys · 74% girls
Arie
“resembling a lion or an eagle”
36% boys · 64% girls
Larkin
“a pretty young woman” · “one who is fierce”
40% boys · 60% girls
Ellington
“eel” · “belonging to”
34% boys · 66% girls
Jae
“resembling a jaybird”
61% boys · 39% girls