Bronte
Of English origin, derived from the town of Brontë in Yorkshire.
Name Census estimates that about 908 living Americans carry the first name Bronte. It is a predominantly female name (98.1% of registrations). The average person named Bronte today is around 26 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Bronte births was 1992 (131 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Bronte. 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
908
~ 1 in 377,483 Americans
Peak year
1992
131 babies that year
Average age
26
years old
2000 SSA rank
#7,634
Tracked since 1969
Gender
Gender distribution for Bronte
Bronte leans heavily female at 98.1% of total registrations, but 18 boys have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Bronte as a male name
- Ranked #10,578 in 2000
- 5 male births in 2000
- Peak: 1994 (8 births)
Bronte as a female name
- Ranked #7,634 in 2024
- 14 female births in 2024
- Peak: 1992 (131 births)
Popularity
Bronte: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Bronte from the 1960s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 561 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1990s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Bronte 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 Bronte during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Brontes live
The SSA's state-level files cover 9 states and territories. California, Texas, Washington recorded the most babies named Bronte, while Utah, Ohio, Hawaii recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 21 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Bronte
The name Bronte is derived from the ancient Greek word "brontē," which means "thunder." It is believed to have originated as a surname in the 19th century, likely in England or Italy. The name's connection to thunder suggests a powerful and resonant quality.
The earliest recorded use of the name Bronte can be traced back to the famous Brontë family of writers in the 19th century. The three Brontë sisters, Charlotte (1816-1855), Emily (1818-1848), and Anne (1820-1849), were renowned authors who made significant contributions to English literature. Their works, such as "Jane Eyre" by Charlotte, "Wuthering Heights" by Emily, and "The Tenant of Wildfell Hall" by Anne, are considered literary classics.
Another notable figure with the name Bronte was Bronte Woodard (1903-1975), an American actress and dancer who appeared in several films during the 1920s and 1930s. She is best known for her roles in the movies "The Unholy Three" (1925) and "The Sin Ship" (1931).
In the field of art, Bronte Arbuthnot (1895-1978) was a British artist and sculptor known for her portraiture and figurative works. She was a member of the Royal Academy of Arts and received several commissions for public sculptures throughout her career.
Bronte Howard (1865-1956) was an Australian politician and activist who fought for women's rights and suffrage. She played a significant role in the women's movement in Australia during the early 20th century and served as the president of the National Council of Women of Victoria.
Finally, Bronte Parsonage is a notable literary landmark in Haworth, England, where the Brontë family lived and wrote their famous works. It has been preserved as a museum and attracts visitors from around the world who are interested in the lives and works of the Brontë sisters.
People
Bronte + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Bronte 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
Bronte: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Bronte?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 908 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Bronte 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 377,483 US residents.
Is Bronte a common name?
We classify Bronte as "Very Rare". It ranks above 89.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 932 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Bronte most popular?
The single biggest year for Bronte was 1992, when 131 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Bronte is about 26 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Bronte a female name?
Yes, 98.1% of people registered as Bronte 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.
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.