Christine
A feminine name derived from Christian meaning "follower of Christ".
Name Census estimates that about 426,161 living Americans carry the first name Christine. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Christine today is around 56 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Christine births was 1952 (17,577 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Christine. 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.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Christine with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Although Christine is used almost entirely for girls, the SSA data does show 2,031 boys registered with the name since 1880.
- • Compared to the 1960s, recent registration numbers for Christine have dropped to less than 5% of what they once were.
People living today
426K
~ 1 in 804 Americans
Peak year
1952
17,577 babies that year
Average age
56
years old
2007 SSA rank
#1,197
Tracked since 1880
Census
Christine in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 482,604 people with the first name Christine, which placed it at #92 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
#92
National first-name rank
People counted
483K
482,604 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
159.8
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
80.6% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Christine
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Christine is White at 80.6%. The next largest groups are Black (5.8%) and Hispanic (5.7%). 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 Christine 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 Christine at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White80.6% · 388,851
- Black or African American5.8% · 27,986
- Hispanic or Latino5.7% · 27,425
- Asian and Pacific Islander5.0% · 24,336
- Two or more races2.4% · 11,756
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 2,250
Gender
Gender distribution for Christine
Out of the 588,308 babies given the name Christine since 1880, 99.7% were registered as female. The name sits firmly on the female side of the spectrum, with only a handful of male registrations across the entire dataset.
Christine as a male name
- Ranked #9,950 in 2007
- 7 male births in 2007
- Peak: 1989 (58 births)
Christine as a female name
- Ranked #1,197 in 2024
- 197 female births in 2024
- Peak: 1952 (17,548 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Christine appears almost entirely female. Of the 482,596 people counted with this name, 99.9% were female and only a very small share were male.
Popularity
Christine: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Christine from the 1880s through to the 2020s, spanning 15 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1960s, with 139,724 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1960s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Christine 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 Christine during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1880s | 0 | 1,266 | 1,266 |
| 1890s | 0 | 2,565 | 2,565 |
| 1900s | 5 | 3,901 | 3,906 |
| 1910s | 46 | 14,094 | 14,140 |
| 1920s | 105 | 22,334 | 22,439 |
| 1930s | 115 | 18,488 | 18,603 |
| 1940s | 174 | 54,563 | 54,737 |
| 1950s | 259 | 113,340 | 113,599 |
| 1960s | 385 | 139,339 | 139,724 |
| 1970s | 420 | 103,237 | 103,657 |
| 1980s | 387 | 68,015 | 68,402 |
| 1990s | 107 | 31,618 | 31,725 |
| 2000s | 28 | 8,702 | 8,730 |
| 2010s | 0 | 3,730 | 3,730 |
| 2020s | 0 | 1,085 | 1,085 |
Geography
Where Christines live
The SSA's state-level files cover 51 states and territories. New York, California, Pennsylvania recorded the most babies named Christine, while Wyoming, Alaska, Nevada recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 11,310 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Christine
The name Christine has its roots in the Greek language and culture, originating from the word "Christos," which means "anointed." It was derived from the name Christina, a feminine form of the male name Christian, both of which were widely used in early Christianity.
The earliest recorded instance of the name Christine dates back to the 4th century AD, when it was borne by Saint Christina the Astonishing, a Belgian saint known for her miraculous levitations and other mystical occurrences. This association with an early Christian saint contributed to the name's widespread adoption among believers.
In the Middle Ages, the name Christine gained popularity throughout Europe, particularly in regions influenced by the Catholic Church. It was frequently bestowed upon girls as a way to honor the Virgin Mary and express devotion to the Christian faith. The name also appeared in various medieval literary works and religious texts.
One of the most notable historical figures bearing the name Christine was Christine de Pizan (1364-1430), a renowned Italian-French author and philosopher. She is considered one of the earliest female writers to have achieved recognition in Europe and is celebrated for her contributions to literature and feminist thought.
Another prominent individual with this name was Christine of Sweden (1626-1689), a former Queen of Sweden who abdicated her throne to pursue her interests in philosophy, science, and the arts. She is remembered for her patronage of scholars and her efforts to promote intellectual discourse.
In the realm of literature, Christine de Stael (1766-1817) was a French-Swiss writer, philosopher, and influential figure during the Enlightenment period. Her works explored topics such as politics, literature, and the role of women in society, earning her recognition as a leading intellectual of her time.
The name Christine also found its way into the arts, with Christine Nilsson (1843-1921), a renowned Swedish operatic soprano who achieved international fame for her performances in various operas throughout Europe and the United States.
In more recent times, Christine Lagarde (born 1956) has been a prominent figure in global politics and finance, serving as the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund and the current President of the European Central Bank.
These are just a few examples of the diverse historical figures who have borne the name Christine, showcasing its enduring presence across various fields and eras.
Notable bearers
Famous people named Christine
People
Christine + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Christine as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with C
Other first names starting with C with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Christine: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Christine?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 426,161 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Christine 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 804 US residents.
Is Christine a common name?
We classify Christine as "Common". It ranks above 99.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 588,308 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Christine most popular?
The single biggest year for Christine was 1952, when 17,577 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Christine is about 56 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Christine in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 482,604 people with the name Christine, or 159.79 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #92 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 Christine 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 Christine?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Christine appears almost entirely female. Of the 482,596 people counted with this name, 99.9% were female and only a very small share were male. 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 Christine?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Christine is White at 80.6%. The next largest groups are Black (5.8%) and Hispanic (5.7%). 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 Christine most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Christine in the 2020 Census, accounting for 80.6% (388,851 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 Christine in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Christine a female name?
Yes, 99.7% of people registered as Christine 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.
Is Christine still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Christine 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 Christine 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 the name Christine?
Want to know how many people share the name Christine? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.