Buchanan

#6,510 in 2025Boys' name

Transferred from a surname; no fixed literal translation

Buchanan has been given to 101 babies in the U.S. since 1996. In 2025 it ranked #6,510 of 13,926 boys’ names in use. Its peak year was 2025, with 13 recorded.

Babies named Buchanan, 2025

1 in 255,000

Buchanan over time, 1880–2025

Boys

Based on births in the U.S. Babies given the name each year. Hover the chart — or focus it and use the arrow keys — for any year. Gaps mean the name was given fewer than 5 times that year; these counts are unpublished.

Buchanan: meaning, origin, and history

Transferred from a surname; no fixed literal translation

surname transfer

What Buchanan means

Buchanan is a given name.

Origin, language, and formation

Buchanan is used in English. Its origins include surname transfer.

Buchanan is recorded as a surname transferred into given-name use.

Pronunciation and spelling

In English, Buchanan is pronounced /bjuˈkænən/.

American usage and historical context

In the United States, 101 boys were recorded with the name Buchanan between 1996 and 2025. Its highest annual count was 13 in 2025; its best national rank was #6,510 in 2025.

Over 5 years its rank rose, from #7,600 in 2020 to #6,510 in 2025. Over 10 years its rank rose, from #8,862 in 2015 to #6,510 in 2025.

Sources & methodologyReferences, data & attribution

Meaning, origin, and language notes draw on the references below.

American popularity figures use published Social Security Administration records for this exact spelling. Counts below five for a name, sex, and year are omitted.

Wiktionary material is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

How common is Buchanan?

Everything below is computed from the 2025 data — the most recent year available.

Among all babies, 2025: 1 in 255,000; 13 of 3,315,165 births
Among boys only: 1 in 131,000; <0.01% of boys
Rank, 2025: #6,510; of 13,926 boys’ names in use
Coin-flip room size: 176,762 kids; Even odds of a second one

Where Buchanan sits on the popularity scale

Rarest published (5 a year)#1 — Liam (20,818)

Chance at least one other child shares the name

If the other children were drawn at random from the 2025 national name distribution. Real classrooms cluster by region and community, so treat these as a floor, not a ceiling.

Class of 20Under 1%

Class of 30Under 1%

Grade of 100Under 1%

School of 500Under 1%

Put another way: gather 176,762 children born in 2025 and it's an even bet that one of them is another Buchanan. In a class of 30 the chance is Under 1%.

When Buchanans were born

Half of everyone ever recorded as Buchanan was born before 2020 — so the typical Buchanan is around 5 today.

Median birth year: 2020; About 5 years old
Biggest decade: 2020s; 54.5% of all use
Born in the last 25 years: 90.1%; A modern name
Recorded since 1950: 101; People you could plausibly meet

Choose a decade

2020s — 54.5% of all recorded uses (55).

Is Buchanan rising or falling?

Rank movement and count movement can disagree — the number of distinct names in use keeps growing, so a name holding a steady count still slides down the list. Both are shown.

Rank vs 1 year ago: +1,909; Places climbed
Rank vs 5 years ago: +1,090; Places climbed
Rank vs 10 years ago: +2,352; Places climbed
Births vs 10 years ago: 1.63×; More babies than then
Share of its own peak: 100.0%; Peak was 2025 (13)
Years since peak: Peaking now; At its all-time high
Year-to-year steadiness: Volatile; 26.5% average annual change
Best rank ever: #6,510; 2025

Buchanan around the world

Where Buchanan ranks in official birth records elsewhere in the world. Rankings only — the number of births isn’t comparable between places, so it isn’t shown.

South Australia
1982–1999
#539
in 1999

Popularity data from Consumer and Business Services (South Australia). CBS SA data under CC BY 4.0.

Buchanan by the numbers

The raw record for each sex the name is used for.

As a boy's name

Rank in 2025: #6,510
Trend vs 5 yrs ago: Up 1,090
Best rank ever: #6,510; 2025
Peak year: 2025; 13 that year
First recorded: 1996
Last recorded: 2025
All-time count: 101
Count in 2025: 13

Names similar to Buchanan

Matched on shared beginnings and endings, similar length, and comparable popularity.

Bucklee Yohanan Yochanan Thienan Elchanan Chanan Rhonan Johanan Rohnan Caynan Buckley Kaenan Keinan Elhanan Yohannan Kaynan Roanan Cannan Canan Senan Konan Kaanan Hanan Rennan

Sibling names for Buchanan

Names from the same era and popularity tier — the two things that make a sibling set feel deliberate — skipping lookalike spellings and shared initials.

For a sister

Annabell Leonor Karleigh Rhianna Adelle Keren Kendyl Anabel

For a brother

Evans Kale Hamilton Aaden Caesar Tobin Jerimiah Jorden

Explore around Buchanan

Top names of 2025, Buchanan's peak year The 2020s in full Other names that peaked in 2025 Boys' names starting with B