Dakota Fanning Genealogy
(aka, Hannah Dakota Fanning)Are You Related?

A child actress who has transitioned seamlessly into an adult career, Hannah Dakota Fanning was born February 23, 1994, in Conyers, Georgia. Fanning started out in community theater, then began acting professionally at the age of five with a commercial for Tide detergent. Roles on ER, CSI, The Practice, Spin City, and Ally McBeal paved the way for her breakout performance in I Am Sam, which earned her a Screen Actors Guild nomination at the age of seven, making her the youngest nominee in history. More roles followed, including Uptown Girls, Man on Fire, Coraline, and War of the Worlds. At the age of twelve, she was initiated into the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, its youngest ever member. Roles in Push, the Secret Life of Bees, and the Twilight saga have helped her transition into more grownup roles. She is currently attending New York University and continues to work regularly.

Dakota Fanning's last name, "Fanning," is an Irish name from the Gaelic word "fionn" meaning "fair." It comes from Limerick in Southern Ireland in the 12th Century. Other spellings include "Fannin," "Fanningley," "Fannon," "Feenan," "Finan," "Finnan," and "O'Finan." The first Fanning to settle in the United States was Edmund Fanning in Connecticut in 1653.