The baby name Jayden defines a generation.
Thanks to Jadon for suggesting our Baby Name of the Day.
WHAT DOES THE NAME JAYDEN MEAN?
In the Old Testament, Jadon appears as a minor figure. He helps repair the walls of Jerusalem in the Book of Nehemiah.
It’s a Hebrew name meaning praise or thankful, or possibly something like “he will judge.”
Nearly any Biblical name is used in small numbers, and Jadon is no exception. But those numbers were really small.
Over the years, this early Jadon went mostly unnoticed.
JASON JUNIOR
The baby name Jadon – and Jaydon, Jayden, and Jaden – first appear in US popularity data during the 1970s.
That’s the peak of a similar-sounding, but completely unrelated name: Jason.
The leader of the Argonauts in Greek mythology, Jason’s name was well-known in the ancient world. It also appears in the New Testament. Unlike Jadon, it was long used in small numbers in the US.
During the 1960s, it skyrocketed in use, reaching the Top Ten by 1971, and remaining there until the 1980s. It’s a modern staple today.
Not surprisingly, other similar names followed Jason’s rise in popularity. Old Testament Jacob, with a similar sound, would also rank in the Top Ten for years, eventually reaching the #1 spot.
J names, including Justin and Jordan, joined traditional favorites like James, John, and Joseph, near the top of the charts.
Also noteworthy: Jade started to trend for girls and boys alike, though it would ultimately become far more popular for our daughters.
THE DEBUT OF JADEN and JAYDEN
Given the popularity of Jason, Jacob, and Jade, it’s not surprising that another Jay name would trend.
But it’s a little tricky, because Jayden isn’t one name.
The US Social Security Administration (SSA) counts each individual spelling as a separate name. While it makes sense on paper, it can camoflauge a quickly-rising choice.
Jayden and Jaden first appear in popularity data during the 1970s.
It wasn’t until the 1990s that the names started to appear in the US Top 1000. Both Jayden and Jaden debuted in in the year 1994.
One possible reason 1994 might’ve been the tipping point? Star Trek: The Next Generation. In a February 1994 episode, the android Data is lost on a mission, and develops amnesia. His rescuers call him Jayden.
Maybe that’s a long shot.
But it’s part of the story of Jayden’s rise.
JADEN SMITH
In 1998, actors Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith were incredibly successful and so, so famous.
When the couple welcomed their first child together, they name him Jaden – inspired by mom’s name, Jada.
Two years later, daughter Willow would be named after dad. And not long after that, Britney Spears would name her son Jayden. So did more celebrity parents.
The baby name Jaden immediately leapt in US popularity data.
In 1997, the name ranked #456. As of 1999, it stood at #202.
It quickly became part of an even bigger phenomenon.
Another factor: Jaden Smith would become an actor, starring in major films like 2010’s installment of Karate Kid.
AIDEN, JAIDEN, CADEN, HAYDEN, AND MORE
During the 1990s, Irish names Aidan and Aiden caught on in a big way.
As of the year 2005:
- Aidan and Aiden ranked in the US Top 100, and Aydan, Ayden, and Aydin all charted higher up
- Brayden was a Top 100 favorite, with Braeden, Braden, Bradyn, Braydon, and Brayden also ranked in the Top 1000
- The Top 100 also included Caden and Kaden, with Cayden, Kadin, Kadyn, Kaiden, and Kayden farther up on the list
- Hayden ranked in the Top 100, with Haden also in use
- Top 100 Jayden and Jaden were followed by Jadon, Jadyn, Jaeden, Jaiden, Jaidyn, Jaydin, and Jaydon
More rhymes-with-aiden names, like Zayden and Raiden, would follow in future years, as well as even more spelling variations, like Jaydan.
It was a surge of similar-sounding names, and that’s without considering 2000’s favorites with similar sounds, like Mason, Cade, or Jaylon.
HOW POPULAR IS THE NAME JAYDEN?
Jayden quickly became one of the boys’ names defining the era.
In 1994, the baby name Jayden debuted in the US Top 1000 at #850.
Lots of rhyming names were spiking during the late 1990s, but none as fast as Jayden.
By 2003, Jayden entered the US Top 100.
It hit #8 in 2009, and peaked at #4 in 2010 and 2011.
As of 2023, Jayden ranks a respectable #49. It’s still considered a crrent, stylish name by many.
In the UK and other English-speaking countries, Jayden never reached such great heights. But from Canada to New Zealand and beyond, the name trended. Even in places with different languages, like Puerto Rico and Quebec, as well as France and the Netherlands, Jayden charted.
UNISEX NAME
While all of the spellings make it tough to pin down, there’s no question that Jayden has been viewed as unisex.
From 1998 to 2018, Jayden charted in the girls’ Top 1000, too, making the name even more popular than it appears.
FADING TREND OR NEW TRADITIONAL?
Not so long ago, Jayden felt like a unique name – a successor to generations of Jasons and Jameses that was just different enough.
Today it’s fading. Parents’ preferences change quickly. Now you might hear “nothing that rhymes with Aiden” as a rule for naming a boy. And fewer newborns that ever are receiving such names.
But something tells me that Jayden is likely to survive. Along Aiden and a few others, it feels more like a new traditional. With a nod to more enduring names, Jayden feels substantial. It’s in the Bible, after all.
The baby name Jayden fits with more traditional, popular names like Alexander and Matthew, as well as trendier names, like Justin or Tristan.
There’s enough history behind Jayden to keep it in use. And a generation of men with the name may very well hand it down to their sons, putting Jayden in the same new traditional category as Ryan and Landon.
What do you think of the baby name Jayden?
First published on July 24, 2012, this post was revised on February 20, 2025.
Oh, and doesn’t Braden have a decent pedigree? I went to high school with one so I know it’s been around for at least 25 years. Which isn’t exactly a long history but it didn’t strike me as weird or made up at the time, just a little unusual.
Jaden doesn’t bother me that much. I find all the rhyming names and their overuse annoying, but they don’t sound unpleasant. Aidan was on my list once upon a time. Once it became so popular, spawning multiple spellings, it fell off.
To be fair, I always liked how the Pinkett-Smiths named the boy after his mother. That almost never happens now, not even with girls – which used to be as common as Jrs on boys.
I agree. 🙂
I’m with you. I think of their Jaden as “legitimate” since his name has a meaning.
And then the girl after the father. Will/Willow. Even if I wouldn’t do it myself, I kind of like their family tradition.
That’s a very good point, Rita!
When I was around 10 years old, I thought I made up the name Jaden. I was very disappointed when Will & Jada used it for their son a couple years later (and amused when I found out that I did not, in fact, create this name)! I don’t mind this name, but the spelling of Jayden definitely irks me, I much prefer Jaden or Jadon.
I teach a very sweet little Kayden in Sunday School and one of my best friends has a Hayden and I really can’t consider them or their parents trashy. I would just never use a name without at least a few generations of use and I prefer names with one obvious spelling, which none of the -ayden names really have.
I’m glad to know about the biblical link to Jaden, but in addition to all the other issues (although I refuse to call any other fellow human trashy), it reminds me of jaded.
Another one Uma won’t use 😉
I find it interesting that the least use spellings – Jadon and Aden – are biblical. Knowing that Jadon’s biblical makes me warm up to it a bit more. Hayden and Brayton are family surnames that I considered using before the meteoric rise of the -aiden names.
I suspect the 1963 movie, Jason and the Argonauts, helped propel Jason up the charts.
I agree. Jadon isn’t a bad name at all. I could see why parents may have first turned to it. It is just too bad that Jayden has become exceedingly far more popular than its Biblical ancestor.
To be fair, I’m not sure that comparing Jayden to Jason is entirely accurate. Jayden is a never-before-seen, newly-coined name whereas Jason definitely saw some use in the US during the 1800s, especially toward the middle of the century.
That said, every time I hear a name that rhymes with Jayden I want to scream. One of the teams in my cousin’s baseball league has a Kaden, Jayden, and an Aiden (not sure of the spellings). Is this the future of America? Every boys’ sports team having multiple -adens? Also, for what it’s worth, I have noticed that nearly all of the parents of these boys (and sometimes girls) are, shall we say, a little trashy?
Despite it being a smoosh of classic boy names, Jayden just feels feminine to me. I’m sure it charts much lower for girls. I just don’t like it for a boy or a man at all.
As soon as Britney used it, it became a never-ever for me. She’s just about the opposite of the word “class”, so any name she chose (Preston?) fell into the not-gonna-do-it camp for me.
And can somebody explain why the tabloids use first and middle when “reporting” on starbabies? He’s always Jayden James and his brother is always Seam Preston.
“The opposite of class…” Yep! When a porn star steals your kid’s name (Jayden James, on a girl, no less) you have failed as a namer.