How Many People Are Named Heather?
people named Heather are alive in the United States today (estimate)
About 1 in 680 people in the US has this name
Based on 527,387 babies named Heather in Social Security records from 1914 to 2025, and the share of each birth year still alive in 2025.
Popularity Rank
⭐⭐ Common
Peak Year
24,366 births
Trend
Stable (last 10 years)
📖 Name Origin & Meaning
Meaning:
From the English word heather for the variety of small shrubs with pink or white flowers which commonly grow in rocky areas. It is derived from Middle English hather. It was first used as a given name in the late 19th century, though it did not become popular until the last half of the 20th century.
Source of the meaning, origin, pronunciation and related names: Behind the Name.
⚧ Gender Distribution
Almost all of the babies given the name Heather (99.7%) were girls.
👥 Age Distribution
The average person named Heather alive today is about 44 years old, and 91% are between 30 and 59. Half of them were between 38 and 50 in 2025.
📈 Popularity Over Time
Heather first appears in the records in 1914 and was given most often in 1975, to 24,366 babies. In 2025, 177 babies got the name.
Babies given the name each year, 1914 to 2025
🏆 Rank History
Heather reached #3 among girls' names in 1975, and was in the top 10 in 15 years between 1972 and 1987. In 2025 it ranked #1,264.
| Girls | |
|---|---|
| Rank in 2025 | #1,264 |
| Best rank | #3 (1975) |
| Years in the top 10 | 15 |
| Years in the top 100 | 32 (1967 to 1998) |
| Rank in its biggest decade | #8 in the 1970s |
📍 State-Wise Distribution
People named Heather alive today, by the state where they were born (estimate; state records start in 1910).
More people named Heather were born in California than in any other state: about 45,505 of those alive today. Compared with the national rate in the same years, Heather was given 2 times as often in Vermont, 1.7 times in Maine and 1.7 times in New Hampshire.
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