Bertis
Diminutive form of the Germanic name Bertram meaning "bright raven".
Name Census estimates that about 123 living Americans carry the first name Bertis. It is a predominantly male name (96.0% of registrations). The average person named Bertis today is around 77 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Bertis births was 1919 (20 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Bertis. 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 Bertis is about 77 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Bertis' were born before 1959.
People living today
123
~ 1 in 2,786,621 Americans
Peak year
1919
20 babies that year
Average age
77
years old
1976 SSA rank
#3,793
Tracked since 1912
Census
Bertis in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 189 people with the first name Bertis, which placed it at #39,747 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
#39,747
National first-name rank
People counted
189
189 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
74.6% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Bertis
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Bertis is White at 74.6%. The next largest groups are Black (16.4%) and Hispanic (6.9%). 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 Bertis 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 Bertis at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White74.6% · 141
- Black or African American16.4% · 31
- Hispanic or Latino6.9% · 13
- Two or more races1.6% · 3
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 1
Gender
Gender distribution for Bertis
Bertis leans heavily male at 96.0% of total registrations, but 19 girls have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Bertis as a male name
- Ranked #4,991 in 1976
- 6 male births in 1976
- Peak: 1916 (17 births)
Bertis as a female name
- Ranked #3,793 in 1928
- 7 female births in 1928
- Peak: 1919 (7 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Bertis leans strongly male. 164 people counted with this name were male (84.5%), compared with 30 female bearers (15.5%).
Popularity
Bertis: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Bertis from the 1910s through to the 1970s, spanning 7 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 142 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
Bertis 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 Bertis during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Bertis' live
The SSA's state-level files cover 3 states and territories. Illinois, Indiana, Texas recorded the most babies named Bertis, while Texas, Indiana, Illinois recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 7 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Bertis
The name Bertis has its origins in ancient Germanic languages, with roots that can be traced back to the 5th century BCE. It is derived from the Proto-Germanic word "berhta," which means "bright" or "shining." This reflects the cultural significance placed on light and brightness in early Germanic societies.
In its earliest form, the name was spelled "Berhta" or "Berhto," and it was commonly used by various Germanic tribes, including the Franks, Saxons, and Goths. Over time, as these tribes migrated and interacted with other cultures, the name underwent various spelling and pronunciation changes, eventually evolving into the modern form of "Bertis."
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Codex Argenteus, a 6th-century manuscript containing a translation of the Bible into the Gothic language. In this text, the name "Berhta" is used to refer to a female character, suggesting its use among the Gothic people of that era.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Bertis. One of the earliest was Bertis of Bayeux (c. 1050 - 1120), a Norman nobleman and military leader who fought alongside William the Conqueror during the Norman conquest of England in 1066. His bravery and loyalty earned him lands and titles in the newly established Norman kingdom.
Another prominent figure was Bertis the Scribe (c. 1220 - 1290), a renowned calligrapher and illuminator of manuscripts in medieval France. His exquisite work can be found in numerous religious texts and historical documents from the 13th century, preserved in libraries and museums across Europe.
In the 14th century, Bertis of Siena (1342 - 1390) was a renowned Italian painter and sculptor, celebrated for his contributions to the early Renaissance art movement. His frescoes and sculptures adorned many churches and public buildings in Siena and neighboring cities, and his innovative techniques influenced generations of artists.
During the 16th century, Bertis Erasmus (1466 - 1536) was a Dutch Renaissance scholar, humanist, and theologian. Known as a leading figure of the Northern Renaissance, he was highly regarded for his contributions to classical literature, philosophy, and religious reform.
In more recent times, Bertis Aafjes (1909 - 1992) was a celebrated Dutch poet, novelist, and essayist. His works, spanning over six decades, explored themes of love, nature, and human existence, earning him numerous literary awards and widespread acclaim in the Netherlands and beyond.
People
Bertis + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Bertis 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
Bertis: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Bertis?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 123 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Bertis 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 2,786,621 US residents.
Is Bertis a common name?
We classify Bertis as "Very Rare". It ranks above 67.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 474 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Bertis most popular?
The single biggest year for Bertis was 1919, when 20 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Bertis is about 77 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Bertis in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 189 people with the name Bertis, or 0.06 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #39,747 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 Bertis 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 Bertis?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Bertis leans strongly male. 164 people counted with this name were male (84.5%), compared with 30 female bearers (15.5%). 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 Bertis?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Bertis is White at 74.6%. The next largest groups are Black (16.4%) and Hispanic (6.9%). 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 Bertis most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Bertis in the 2020 Census, accounting for 74.6% (141 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 Bertis in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Bertis a male name?
Yes, 96.0% of people registered as Bertis 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 Bertis still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Bertis 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 Bertis 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 share the name Bertis?
Find out how many people have the name Bertis on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.