Brenner
A masculine German name meaning "burner" or "charcoal burner".
Name Census estimates that about 1,195 living Americans carry the first name Brenner. It is a predominantly male name (99.2% of registrations). The average person named Brenner today is around 18 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Brenner births was 2008 (76 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Brenner. 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
1.2K
~ 1 in 286,824 Americans
Peak year
2008
76 babies that year
Average age
18
years old
2024 SSA rank
#4,077
Tracked since 1979
Census
Brenner in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 1,170 people with the first name Brenner, which placed it at #11,112 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
#11,112
National first-name rank
People counted
1.2K
1,170 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.4
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
82.1% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Brenner
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Brenner is White at 82.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.4%) and Two or More Races (5.2%). 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 Brenner 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 Brenner at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White82.1% · 960
- Hispanic or Latino7.4% · 87
- Two or more races5.2% · 61
- Black or African American2.1% · 25
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.7% · 20
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.5% · 17
Gender
Gender distribution for Brenner
Out of the 1,210 babies given the name Brenner since 1880, 99.2% were registered as male. The name sits firmly on the male side of the spectrum, with only a handful of female registrations across the entire dataset.
Brenner as a male name
- Ranked #4,077 in 2024
- 26 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2008 (76 births)
Brenner as a female name
- Ranked #16,680 in 2016
- 5 female births in 2016
- Peak: 2010 (5 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Brenner leans strongly male. 1,124 people counted with this name were male (96.1%), compared with 46 female bearers (3.9%).
Popularity
Brenner: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Brenner from the 1970s through to the 2020s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 472 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Brenner 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 Brenner during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Brenners live
The SSA's state-level files cover 7 states and territories. Texas, California, Missouri recorded the most babies named Brenner, while Utah, Ohio, Washington recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 16 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Brenner
The name Brenner is of German origin, derived from the Middle High German word "brenner," which means "burner" or "one who burns." This name likely originated in the medieval period, around the 12th or 13th century, and was initially an occupational surname given to individuals who worked as burners, such as charcoal burners or glass makers.
The earliest recorded instances of the name Brenner can be found in historical records from various regions of Germany, particularly in areas where glassmaking or charcoal burning were prominent industries. The name may have also been associated with those who worked with fire, such as blacksmiths or potters.
One of the earliest notable individuals with the name Brenner was Hans Brenner, a German glassmaker who lived in the 15th century. He is credited with introducing new techniques in glassmaking and contributing to the development of the industry in Germany.
In the 16th century, there was a German Protestant reformer named Thomas Brenner, who played a significant role in the Reformation movement. He worked alongside Martin Luther and was known for his translations of religious texts.
Another historical figure with the name Brenner was Johann Georg Brenner, a German botanist and physician who lived in the 17th century. He made significant contributions to the study of plants and published several works on botany.
In the 18th century, there was a German composer and organist named Christian Gottlob Brenner, who was renowned for his compositions for the organ and his contributions to church music.
A more recent individual with the name Brenner was Hildegard Brenner, a German opera singer who gained prominence in the early 20th century. She was born in 1889 and was celebrated for her performances in various operas by Wagner, Strauss, and other composers.
While the name Brenner originated as an occupational surname, it has since evolved into a given name, particularly in German-speaking regions. Its connection to fire, burning, and crafts involving heat and flames has contributed to its unique and distinctive character.
People
Brenner + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Brenner 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
Brenner: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Brenner?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,195 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Brenner 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 286,824 US residents.
Is Brenner a common name?
We classify Brenner as "Rare". It ranks above 91.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,210 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Brenner most popular?
The single biggest year for Brenner was 2008, when 76 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Brenner is about 18 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Brenner in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 1,170 people with the name Brenner, or 0.39 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #11,112 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 Brenner 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 Brenner?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Brenner leans strongly male. 1,124 people counted with this name were male (96.1%), compared with 46 female bearers (3.9%). 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 Brenner?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Brenner is White at 82.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.4%) and Two or More Races (5.2%). 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 Brenner most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Brenner in the 2020 Census, accounting for 82.1% (960 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 Brenner in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Brenner a male name?
Yes, 99.2% of people registered as Brenner 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 Brenner still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Brenner 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 Brenner 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 Americans are named Brenner?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.