Branch
A nature-inspired masculine name referring to the woody extension of a tree.
Name Census estimates that about 883 living Americans carry the first name Branch. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Branch today is around 15 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Branch births was 2018 (92 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Branch. 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.
People living today
883
~ 1 in 388,170 Americans
Peak year
2018
92 babies that year
Average age
15
years old
2024 SSA rank
#3,216
Tracked since 1889
Census
Branch in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 709 people with the first name Branch, which placed it at #16,031 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
#16,031
National first-name rank
People counted
709
709 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
81.7% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Branch
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Branch is White at 81.7%. The next largest groups are Black (8.9%) and Two or More Races (4.1%). 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 Branch 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 Branch at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White81.7% · 579
- Black or African American8.9% · 63
- Two or more races4.1% · 29
- Hispanic or Latino3.8% · 27
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 6
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 5
Popularity
Branch: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Branch from the 1880s through to the 2020s, spanning 12 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 420 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Branch remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Branch 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 Branch during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Branchs live
The SSA's state-level files cover 10 states and territories. Texas, Georgia, Missouri recorded the most babies named Branch, while Virginia, Utah, Oregon recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 13 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Branch
The given name Branch is of English origin, derived from the word "branch," referring to the woody part of a tree extending from the trunk or main stem. The earliest recorded use of Branch as a given name dates back to the late 16th century in England, where it was likely given to children born on estates or in rural areas with a connection to nature or forestry.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the name Branch appeared sporadically in historical records and parish registers across various regions of England. It was particularly prevalent in areas with a strong agricultural or woodland heritage, such as the counties of Sussex, Kent, and Gloucestershire.
One of the earliest notable individuals bearing the name Branch was Branch Tanner, an English Puritan minister born in 1599. He served as a chaplain during the English Civil War and was a signatory to the Solemn League and Covenant, a significant document in the history of Presbyterianism.
In the 19th century, the name Branch gained some popularity among families in the United States, particularly in the Southern states. This may have been influenced by the admiration for nature and the idyllic rural lifestyle prevalent in the region during that era.
A notable figure with the name Branch from this period was Branch Wright Tanner, an American politician and jurist born in 1825 in North Carolina. He served as a judge on the Supreme Court of Alabama and was a prominent figure in the state's political landscape.
Moving into the 20th century, Branch Rickey, born in 1881 in Ohio, was a celebrated baseball executive and the man credited with breaking the color barrier in Major League Baseball by signing Jackie Robinson to the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1945. Rickey's legacy as a pioneer in sports integration and civil rights is widely recognized.
Another notable individual with the name Branch was Branch McCracken, an American basketball coach born in 1900. He led the Indiana Hoosiers to two NCAA Championship titles in 1940 and 1953, cementing his place as one of the most successful coaches in the history of college basketball.
Branch Shelton, born in 1923 in Texas, was a distinguished American poet and playwright. His works often explored themes of identity, spirituality, and the human experience, earning him critical acclaim and numerous literary awards throughout his career.
While the name Branch may have originated from a humble connection to the natural world, it has been borne by individuals who have left their mark in various fields, including religion, law, sports, and literature, reflecting the diverse paths that those bearing this unique name have taken throughout history.
People
Branch + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Branch 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
Branch: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Branch?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 883 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Branch 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 388,170 US residents.
Is Branch a common name?
We classify Branch as "Very Rare". It ranks above 89.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,030 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Branch most popular?
The single biggest year for Branch was 2018, when 92 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Branch is about 15 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Branch in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 709 people with the name Branch, or 0.23 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #16,031 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 Branch 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 Branch?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Branch leans strongly male. 681 people counted with this name were male (95.5%), compared with 32 female bearers (4.5%). 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 Branch?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Branch is White at 81.7%. The next largest groups are Black (8.9%) and Two or More Races (4.1%). 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 Branch most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Branch in the 2020 Census, accounting for 81.7% (579 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 Branch in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Branch a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Branch 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 Branch still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Branch 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 Branch 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 Branch as a first name?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.