Van is a boy name with a classic feel, drawn from real birth records. Below you'll find what Van means and where it comes from, plus how many babies have been named Van across the United States, UK, Ireland and New Zealand, how popular Van has been over the decades, and the year it peaked.
Van is a boy name of Dutch origin meaning “of, from”. Used as a given name from the Dutch surname particle, also a short form of names like Ivan.
| Country | Births on record |
|---|---|
| United States since 1880 | 31,194 births |
| England & Wales since 1996 | 43 births |
Counts come from official national birth-registration statistics: U.S. Social Security Administration, England & Wales (Office for National Statistics), Scotland (National Records of Scotland), Northern Ireland (NISRA), Ireland (Central Statistics Office) and New Zealand (Dept. of Internal Affairs). Coverage spans differ, so totals aren't directly comparable across countries.
Babies named Van per year, United States (1880 to 2025). United States peaked in 1953 (591/yr) · England & Wales peaked in 2020 (7/yr).
Van has been a fairly common baby name in the United States. It was most common in 1953, when it ranked #627 nationally (given to 591 babies that year).
Vina · Fawn · Von · Vena · Vanna · Viaan · Vianey · Vannie
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