Berman
An Anglo-Saxon name derived from the Old English words "beorn" and "mann", meaning "brave man".
Name Census estimates that about 59 living Americans carry the first name Berman. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Berman today is around 75 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Berman births was 1919 (13 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Berman. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
Key insights
- • The typical person named Berman is about 75 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Bermans were born before 1961.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Berman. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
59
~ 1 in 5,809,396 Americans
Peak year
1919
13 babies that year
Average age
75
years old
1986 SSA rank
#6,007
Tracked since 1911
Census
Berman in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 242 people with the first name Berman, which placed it at #33,953 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#33,953
National first-name rank
People counted
242
242 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
40.1% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Berman
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Berman is White at 40.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (33.9%) and Black (19.4%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Berman described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Berman at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White40.1% · 97
- Hispanic or Latino33.9% · 82
- Black or African American19.4% · 47
- Asian and Pacific Islander4.1% · 10
- Two or more races1.7% · 4
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 2
Popularity
Berman: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Berman from the 1910s through to the 1980s, spanning 8 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 70 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1920s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Berman by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Berman during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Berman
The name Berman has its origins in the Germanic language family, specifically in the Old High German word "bero," which means "bear." This word eventually evolved into various surnames, including Berman and Behrman, in different regions of Central and Northern Europe.
During the Middle Ages, the name Berman was particularly common in the areas that are now modern-day Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. It was often used as a descriptive surname, referring to individuals who were physically strong or brave, similar to the characteristics associated with bears.
While there are no direct references to the name Berman in ancient texts or religious scriptures, it's worth noting that bears held significant symbolic value in various cultures throughout history, including Germanic and Norse mythology.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Berman was Johannes Berman, a German composer and organist who lived in the 16th century (c. 1530-1594). Another notable figure was Georg Berman, a German theologian and philosopher who lived in the 17th century (1622-1676) and wrote extensively on metaphysics and logic.
In the field of literature, the name Berman is associated with Richard Berman, an American poet and writer who was born in 1908 and passed away in 1986. His works, including the collection "Figuring the Word," explored themes of language, identity, and the human condition.
The world of sports has also seen its share of notable individuals with the name Berman. One example is Shelley Berman, an American actor, comedian, and satirist who was born in 1925 and gained fame for his unique comedic style and performances in the 1950s and 1960s.
Another significant figure was Pinchas Berman, an Israeli chess player and International Master who lived from 1905 to 1994. He was a prominent figure in the Israeli chess community and made valuable contributions to the development of the game in his country.
These are just a few examples of the diverse individuals throughout history who have carried the name Berman, showcasing its rich and varied heritage across different fields and cultures.
People
Berman + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Berman as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with B
Other first names starting with B with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Berman: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Berman?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 59 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Berman going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 5,809,396 US residents.
Is Berman a common name?
We classify Berman as "Very Rare". It ranks above 56.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 249 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Berman most popular?
The single biggest year for Berman was 1919, when 13 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Berman is about 75 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Berman in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 242 people with the name Berman, or 0.08 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #33,953 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Berman in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Berman?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Berman leans strongly male. 247 people counted with this name were male (98.0%), compared with 5 female bearers (2.0%). The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Berman?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Berman is White at 40.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (33.9%) and Black (19.4%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Berman most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Berman in the 2020 Census, accounting for 40.1% (97 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Berman in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Berman a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Berman in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Berman still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Berman in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Berman can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
How many people have the name Berman?
For a quick modern take, check how many Americans are named Berman on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.