girl's name
Breanna
bree-AN-uh
- Origin American
- Gender Girl
- Letters 7
- Popularity Uncommon
- Births on record 87,957
Northern Ireland
#288
2009 births
Breanna is a feminine of Brian invented in twentieth-century America, and Brian's own meaning is not settled — high or noble is the usual reading and it has never been established. We record 83,097 lifetime births for it, strongest in the United States.
- Breanna is a name of American origin.
- Peaked in 1996, when 4,701 babies were given the name.
- It has been falling over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 48,049 babies in the United States is given this name.
- First appears in US birth records in 1965.
Breanna over time
Births per decade in the United States, 1960s to 2020s. The striped bar is the 2020s, still in progress — it covers 2020 to 2025, not a full ten years.
Show the numbers
| Decade | Births |
|---|---|
| 1960s | 5 |
| 1970s | 486 |
| 1980s | 7,399 |
| 1990s | 40,056 |
| 2000s | 28,053 |
| 2010s | 5,677 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 764 |
What Breanna means
Breanna means high or noble, carried from Brian. The Irish element is usually read that way, though the derivation of Brian itself has never been securely established.
Where Breanna comes from
Breanna is one of several American feminines of Brian, alongside Briana, Brianna and Brianne, which divided a single sound between them in the 1980s and 1990s. Brian is Irish and its derivation is genuinely open — bri, high or noble, is the usual proposal. Brian Boru's defeat of the Norse at Clontarf in 1014 made it a national name in Ireland. The feminine has no Irish tradition behind it and is entirely a modern formation.
Breanna in use
Breanna peaked in the United States in 1996, when 4,701 babies were registered, and is falling in our data. It charts in exactly one of the six markets we track, at 2,542nd in the United States on 69 births, across 87,957 lifetime births. Briana, written up separately, holds comparable volume, and between them the spellings divided one sound four ways.
How popular is Breanna?
In 2025, Breanna was given to 69 babies in the United States. It is used consistently but remains uncommon.
Where Breanna is used
US figures omit any name given to fewer than five babies in a year, so the rarest names are absent from the source rather than absent from use. Data & sources.
Names that peaked alongside Breanna
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Breanna also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Breanna over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
1 nickname for Breanna
Each one is a name in its own right — the figure underneath is how it is doing today, so you can see which short forms are rising and which have faded.
Breanna in other languages
The same name as it is spelled elsewhere — not shortenings, and not different names that merely sound alike. Each one has its own record here.
- German
- Briana
Sibling names for Breanna
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Breanna — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Breanna
What does the name Breanna mean?
High or noble, carried from Brian — though Brian's own derivation is not settled.
Is Breanna an Irish name?
Brian is. The feminine has no Irish tradition and is a modern American formation.
How many spellings are there?
Breanna, Briana, Brianna and Brianne divided one sound between them in the 1980s and 90s.
How popular is Breanna?
2542nd in the United States, down from a 1996 peak of 4,701 births.
Is Breanna a girl's or a boy's name?
Breanna is given almost entirely to girls in birth records.
What are the nicknames for Breanna?
Breanna is usually shortened to Bre.
Is Breanna a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Breanna currently ranks #1,243 in the United States. It has been falling over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.