Zen
Girl name · #3559 in 2025 · Very rare
In 2025, 43 baby girls were named Zen, placing it at #3559 in the official national rankings. A decade ago it stood at #5653, so the name has been rising over the past ten years. Roughly one in every 41,860 girls born in 2025 was named Zen.
Babies named Zen per year. Source: SSA.
The 27-year story
Zen first appears in the Social Security records in 1998, when 5 girls received the name. Its all-time peak is essentially right now: 2022, with 65 babies and a rank of #2661. Names at their peak can keep climbing — or be one trend cycle from the long slide that eventually hits most popular names. Following the curve matters more than today's snapshot: a name's position on its rise-peak-decline arc is the best predictor of how common it will feel in a kindergarten class five years from now.
Unlock the 5-year forecast and compare Zen against up to 5 other names.
Uniqueness: will there be another Zen in class?
On our rarity read — which blends how common Zen is today with its five-year momentum — the name reads as "very rare". A high score means genuine rarity — your Zen will likely be the only one in the room, with the occasional spelling-out as the price.
Where Zen is most common
State-level data for Zen is too sparse in 2025 to rank by rate — in most states its count falls below the SSA's per-state reporting threshold (counts under 5 are withheld).
Names like Zen
Statistically, parents drawn to Zen tend to be choosing among names with similar popularity arcs, era profiles, and sounds — the closest matches in our model are Cohen, Ren, Amen, Rin, and Chozen.
CohenRenAmenRinChozenBowenSevenAuden
Rank history (last 25 years)
| Year | Babies named Zen | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 43 | #3517 |
| 2024 | 41 | #3695 |
| 2023 | 60 | #2823 |
| 2022 | 65 | #2661 |
| 2021 | 52 | #3112 |
| 2020 | 48 | #3221 |
| 2019 | 46 | #3388 |
| 2018 | 30 | #4562 |
| 2017 | 24 | #5338 |
| 2016 | 25 | #5284 |
| 2015 | 23 | #5653 |
| 2014 | 11 | #9517 |
| 2013 | 9 | #11000 |
| 2012 | 15 | #7804 |
| 2011 | 13 | #8614 |
| 2010 | 13 | #8701 |
| 2009 | 9 | #11459 |
| 2008 | 8 | #12579 |
| 2007 | 22 | #6093 |
| 2006 | 6 | #15152 |
| 2004 | 10 | #9892 |
| 2003 | 5 | #15784 |
| 2002 | 6 | #13595 |
| 2000 | 6 | #13154 |
| 1998 | 5 | #14122 |
Frequently asked questions
Is Zen a popular girl name?
Zen ranked #3559 among girls in 2025 with 43 babies given the name — outside the top 500, making it an uncommon pick. Ten years earlier it ranked #5653.
When was the name Zen most popular?
Zen peaked in 2022, when 65 American girls received the name (ranked #2661 that year). That peak is current — the name is at or near its all-time high right now.
How rare is the name Zen?
In 2025, roughly 1 in 41,860 newborn American girls was named Zen. On our rarity scale (rarity blended with momentum) we classify it as "very rare".
Data source: U.S. Social Security Administration name statistics, 1880–2025, national and state files. Counts reflect Social Security card applications; names with fewer than 5 occurrences in a state-year are suppressed by the SSA.