first name
HARLAN
of 53,615 first names recorded in the 2020 Census
Of the 12,600 people named Harlan, 84.9% reported their origin as White, 5.4% as Black and 3.4% as two or more races. 97.6% are male. These count how people described themselves on the 2020 Census, not where the name comes from.
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Harlan peaked in 1924, when 519 babies got the name.
At least 26,980 babies have been given the name since 1880. Years SSA withheld, because fewer than 5 were born, are skipped rather than drawn as zero. * 2025 is the newest year published and it undercounts: a card application is filed some time after a birth.
Harlan by decade
Among all names given to American babies, its best decade was the 1930s, when it ranked #596. The largest share of babies named Harlan, 24.6%, were born between 1928 and 1945, the Silent Generation's birth years.
Rank counts both sexes together, among every name SSA recorded that decade; the number under it is births. The 2020s run only to 2025. Generation years follow Pew Research Center, which has not named a generation after 2012.
Where Harlan is most common
Compared with all babies born in each state since 1910, Harlan has been most common in South Dakota (8.3×), Iowa (6.1×), and North Dakota (5.7×), and least common in Maryland (0.13×).
20,317 births recorded by state, 1910–2025. 2× means twice as common as nationally. States with fewer than 30 such births are left blank, and SSA withholds any year with fewer than 5 in a state, so small states read low.
Either side of Harlan
Spelled almost the same
6 first names in the 2020 Census spelled within a letter or two of Harlan, most common first.
Also a last name
As a last name, Harlan ranks #3,357 of 156,621, with 10,446 people. See Harlan as a last name
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🔎 HARLAN 🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦⬜⬜ 1 in 23,971 Americans Rarer than 78.6% of us Peaked in 1924 with 519 babies Beat that 👇 https://howrareismy.name/first/harlan/