Is Shan a boy or girl name?

Shan is a unisex name. Of the 3,088 Americans recorded with the name since 1880, 28.0% were girls and 72.0% were boys. It changed hands in 1965, and has gone mainly to boys since.

Name Legacy

Shan

Recorded 1944–2024 · United States

Shan was most popular in 1970, when 105 American babies were given the name — ranking #1,849 that year. It was not recorded in 2025. Across 1880–2025 the Social Security Administration has recorded 3,088 people named Shan.

Shan over time

Births per year. The dot marks Shan’s peak in 1970. Gaps are years the SSA suppressed, which it does for any name given to fewer than five babies.

Is Shan a boy’s or a girl’s name?

Across the whole record Shan is a unisex name — 28.0% of the 3,088 Americans given it were girls and 72.0% were boys. It changed hands: since 1965 it has gone mainly to boys, having gone mainly to girls before that. In births since 2016 it is 4% girls and 96% boys.

Counted from every US birth the Social Security Administration recorded under this name, so it reflects use rather than opinion. A name given to fewer than five babies of one sex in a year is withheld at source and is not counted.

Names that peaked alongside Shan

Where Shan is most concentrated

How much more common the name is in each state than across the country as a whole.

Explore further

See Shan on the interactive charts

Source: U.S.A. Social Security Administration. Years 1880–2025. namelegacy.org