The first name Hans

In 2025, 5 boys were named Hans, making it the 3,684th most popular boys’ name. It peaked in 2005, with 14 births (#1,377).

Office for National Statistics; years with fewer than three births are not published and show as zero. Compare Hans with other names.

In 2025, 146 boys born in the United States were named Hans, the 1,325th most popular boys’ name that year. It was used most in 1970, when 271 were.

US Social Security Administration, from applications for a Social Security card. A name is only published for a year when at least five babies were given it, so quieter years show as zero.

• Hans Christian Andersen
  Danish writer and poet (1805–1875)
• Hans Christian Ørsted
  Danish physicist and chemist (1777-1851)
• Hans Bethe
  German-American nuclear physicist, 1906–2005
• Hans Zimmer
  German film composer (born 1957)
• Hans Holbein the Younger
  German artist and printmaker (1497–1543)
• Hans Krebs
  German-British biochemist (1900-1981)
• Hans Frank
  German lawyer, Nazi politician, General Governor of Nazi occupied Poland and convicted war, 1900–1946
• Hans Fischer
  German chemist (1881–1945)
• Hans Spemann
  German embryologist (1869–1941)
• Hans Morgenthau
  American political scientist (1904–1980)
• Hans Eysenck
  British psychologist (1916–1997)
• Hans Kelsen
  Austrian lawyer (1881–1973)

• Frederick
• Friedrich
• Otto
• Wilhelm
• Heinrich
• Ludwig
• Hermann
• Leonard
• Wolfgang
• Kurt
• Fritz
• Leopold
• Gunther
• Dirk
• Manfred
• Bernd

All 62 names of German origin

What does the name Hans mean?

Hans means “john” in German.

What is the origin of the name Hans?

Borrowed from German Hans (occasionally used in English), a medieval short form of Johannes (“John”).

How popular is the name Hans?

In 2025, 5 boys born in England and Wales were named Hans, ranking 3,684th. Its peak was 2005, with 14 births.

Is Hans a boy's or a girl's name?

Mostly a boy's name: 100% of the 15,682 US babies named Hans since 1880 were boys.

When was Hans most popular?

1970 in the United States, when 271 babies were named Hans, its highest rank at 494th.

How do you pronounce Hans?

Hans is /ˈhæns/, one syllable.

What are other spellings of Hans?

Hanns.

Is Hans also a surname?

Yes. Hans is used as a surname as well as a first name; its surname page has the origin and how many people carry it.