Berthenia
A feminine name of uncertain origin, possibly a combination of Germanic elements.
Name Census estimates that about 8 living Americans carry the first name Berthenia. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Berthenia today is around 81 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Berthenia births was 1920 (7 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Berthenia. 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 Berthenia is about 81 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Berthenias were born before 1955.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Berthenia. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
8
~ 1 in 42,844,292 Americans
Peak year
1920
7 babies that year
Average age
81
years old
1949 SSA rank
#5,306
Tracked since 1918
Popularity
Berthenia: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Berthenia from the 1910s through to the 1940s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 31 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1920s peak, Berthenia remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Berthenia 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 Berthenia 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 Berthenia
The given name Berthenia is believed to have originated from the Old English language, with its roots dating back to the Anglo-Saxon period in Britain around the 5th to 11th centuries. It is considered a feminine form of the name Bertram or Bertrand, which were derived from the Germanic elements "beraht" meaning "bright" and "hramn" meaning "raven."
Berthenia was not a widely used name during the medieval period, but it did gain some popularity among the upper classes of English society. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name was Lady Berthenia de Montfort, a noblewoman who lived in the 13th century and was known for her involvement in the Barons' War against King Henry III.
In the 16th century, a woman named Berthenia Overton was mentioned in historical records as one of the attendants to Queen Elizabeth I. Although not much is known about her life, her name suggests that she may have been from a noble family during that era.
During the 17th century, a Dutch artist named Berthenia van der Poel gained recognition for her still-life paintings, particularly those depicting intricate floral arrangements. She was born in 1620 and lived until 1689, leaving behind a notable body of work that can be found in various art museums across Europe.
Another notable figure with the name Berthenia was a French playwright and novelist named Berthenia de Villemur, who lived from 1755 to 1823. She is best known for her novel "Les Aventures de Célestine," which explored themes of love and societal expectations for women during the late 18th century.
In the 19th century, a British botanist named Berthenia Cresswell made significant contributions to the study of plant life in Australia. She was born in 1830 and spent much of her life documenting and cataloging the diverse flora found in various regions of the continent, publishing several influential works on the subject.
Despite its historical roots and occasional appearances throughout the centuries, the name Berthenia has remained relatively uncommon in most parts of the world. However, it serves as a unique and intriguing example of how given names can evolve and carry on the cultural and linguistic influences of past eras.
People
Berthenia + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Berthenia 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
Berthenia: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Berthenia?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 8 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Berthenia 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 42,844,292 US residents.
Is Berthenia a common name?
We classify Berthenia as "Very Rare". It ranks above 24.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 52 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Berthenia most popular?
The single biggest year for Berthenia was 1920, when 7 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Berthenia is about 81 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
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 Berthenia in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Berthenia a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Berthenia in the SSA data are female. 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 Berthenia still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Berthenia 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 Berthenia 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.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many Americans are named Berthenia?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.