FastNamesBrayden
Irish, Celtic and English name meaning "Modern anglicized spelling of the Irish surname Braden (from Gaelic Bradán, 'salmon'), or an English toponymic name meaning 'broad valley'.". Ranked 229th for boys in 2025.
Meaning and origin of Brayden
Modern anglicized spelling of the Irish surname Braden (from Gaelic Bradán, 'salmon'), or an English toponymic name meaning 'broad valley'.
Linguistically, Brayden is classified under Irish, Celtic and English naming traditions. It is typically pronounced "BRAY-dən".
Popularity and ranking
In official US Social Security birth records from 1880 through 2025, Brayden has been given to a total of 136,548 boys. It has also been given to 1,058 girls.
Peak year: Brayden reached its highest relative share among boys in 2010, when 9,122 babies received the name (4,754 per million births).
All-time best rank: 36th place, first achieved in 2011.
Recent standing (2025): Ranked 229th with 1,545 births. Ten years earlier in 2015, it ranked 61st (down 168 spots).
Busiest decade: More boys were named Brayden in the 2010s than in any other decade (66,017 births).
| Decade | Recorded births |
|---|---|
| 1970s | 50 |
| 1980s | 318 |
| 1990s | 5,294 |
| 2000s | 50,382 |
| 2010s | 66,017 |
| 2020s | 14,487 |
Source: Social Security Administration, national baby name data, data through 2025. Names given to fewer than five babies of one sex in a year aren't published, so totals are a little lower than actual births.
Where Brayden is most common in the US
Accounting for when Brayden was in fashion nationally, it has been most heavily concentrated in the following states (measured against the expected rate from each state's births):
- West Virginia: 2.3 times the national rate (1,547 births since 1910).
- Wyoming: 2.2 times the national rate (329 births since 1910).
- Kentucky: 1.9 times the national rate (3,513 births since 1910).
- North Dakota: 1.8 times the national rate (539 births since 1910).
- Maine: 1.8 times the national rate (710 births since 1910).
Source: Social Security Administration, baby names by state, data through 2025. Names given to fewer than five babies of one sex in a state in a year aren't published, so totals are a little lower than actual births.
How many people have the name Brayden?
About 135,000 living American boys and men share the name Brayden. Additionally, an estimated 1,000 living American girls and women share the name.
The median age of an American named Brayden is 15 years old.
Estimated from Social Security Administration records (1880–2025) and official SSA cohort mortality tables.
History of the name Brayden
Brayden represents a modern phonetic elaboration of the traditional Irish surname Braden, derived from the Gaelic personal name Bradán, meaning 'salmon'. In ancient Celtic mythology and folklore, the salmon was the sacred creature of the Otherworld and the ultimate symbol of ancient wisdom, epitomized in the legend of Fionn mac Cumhaill and the Salmon of Knowledge (Bradán Feasa). Alternatively, in English toponymic tradition, Braden derives from Old English brād ('broad') and denu ('valley'), denoting a dweller in an expansive valley or glen.
While Braden existed as an established patronymic and toponymic surname in Ireland and England for centuries, its adoption as a popular given name belongs to the dramatic onomastic shift of late-twentieth-century North America. Spurred by the ascendancy of names sharing the stylish '-ayden' phonetic ending (such as Aidan, Jayden, and Hayden), parents adopted Brayden as a energetic, contemporary choice blending Irish heritage with sleek modern styling.
Brayden surged in the United States during the late 1990s and 2000s, vaulting from rank 487 in 1995 to enter the national top 50 in 2007. It reached its zenith in 2011 at rank 36 with 9,776 registered births. The name remains particularly popular across the Midwest and Southern states, as well as in Canada, where it is borne by premier NHL Stanley Cup champions Brayden Point, Brayden Schenn, and Brayden McNabb.
Notable people named Brayden
- Brayden Point (1996–), Canadian professional ice hockey forward and two-time Stanley Cup champion
- Brayden Schenn (1991–), Canadian professional ice hockey centre, Stanley Cup champion, and team captain
- Brayden McNabb (1991–), Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman and Stanley Cup champion
- Brayden Tracey (2001–), Canadian professional ice hockey forward selected in the first round of the NHL draft
Variants and related names
Spelling variants
Diminutives and nicknames
Related names
Sources and references
- Edward MacLysaght. The Surnames of Ireland (1985), p. 25.
- Patrick Hanks. Dictionary of American Family Names (2003), p. 211.