Brete
A feminine name of unknown origin, perhaps from an Old English source.
Name Census estimates that about 6 living Americans carry the first name Brete. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Brete today is around 63 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Brete births was 1958 (7 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Brete. 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
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Brete. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
6
~ 1 in 57,125,723 Americans
Peak year
1958
7 babies that year
Average age
63
years old
1958 SSA rank
#3,307
Tracked since 1958
Popularity
Brete: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Brete 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 Brete during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 7 | 0 | 7 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Brete
The given name Brete has its origins in the Germanic languages, particularly in Old Norse and Old English. It is a feminine form of the name Bertram or Bertrand, which is derived from the Germanic elements "beraht" meaning "bright" and "hramn" meaning "raven."
In the early medieval period, the name Brete was popular among the Anglo-Saxons and Norsemen who settled in parts of what is now England, Scotland, and Ireland. It was sometimes spelled as Briht, Britta, or Berhta, reflecting the variations in pronunciation and spelling across different regions.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Brete can be found in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, which mentions a woman named Brete who was a close companion of Queen Æthelflæd, the ruler of Mercia in the early 10th century. Æthelflæd and Brete are known for their efforts in strengthening the defenses of Mercia against Viking raids.
In Norse mythology, there is a figure named Brísingamen, sometimes referred to as Brete, who was a renowned craftsperson and the keeper of a legendary necklace. This association with craftsmanship and precious objects may have contributed to the name's popularity among the Norse people.
Throughout history, several notable women have borne the name Brete, including:
1. Brete of Hildelsheim (c. 1100 - c. 1170), a German abbess and religious writer known for her mystical visions and correspondence with notable figures of her time.
2. Brete Sørensen (1580 - 1638), a Danish noblewoman and landowner who played a significant role in the Protestant Reformation in Denmark.
3. Brete Kristensen (1815 - 1898), a Norwegian writer and educator who was one of the first women to publish fiction in the Nynorsk language.
4. Brete Althaus (1919 - 2011), a German actress and theater director renowned for her performances in classical plays and her work in promoting the arts.
5. Brete Brownell (born 1951), an American artist and sculptor known for her large-scale public installations and environmental artworks.
While the name Brete has been less common in recent times, it remains a part of the rich cultural heritage of the Germanic peoples, reflecting their history, mythology, and linguistic traditions.
People
Brete + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Brete 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
Brete: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Brete?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 6 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Brete 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 57,125,723 US residents.
Is Brete a common name?
We classify Brete as "Very Rare". It ranks above 22.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 7 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Brete most popular?
The single biggest year for Brete was 1958, when 7 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Brete is about 63 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 Brete in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Brete a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Brete 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 Brete still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Brete 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 Brete 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 people are called Brete?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.