Collier
One who makes or sells collars or necklaces.
Name Census estimates that about 1,829 living Americans carry the first name Collier. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 86.8% of registrations being male. The average person named Collier today is around 22 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Collier births was 2023 (80 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Collier. 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
1.8K
~ 1 in 187,400 Americans
Peak year
2023
80 babies that year
Average age
22
years old
2024 SSA rank
#2,709
Tracked since 1898
Census
Collier in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 1,530 people with the first name Collier, which placed it at #9,196 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
#9,196
National first-name rank
People counted
1.5K
1,530 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.5
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
80.2% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Collier
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Collier is White at 80.2%. The next largest groups are Black (12.4%) 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 Collier 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 Collier at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White80.2% · 1,227
- Black or African American12.4% · 189
- Two or more races4.1% · 63
- Hispanic or Latino2.1% · 32
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 13
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 6
Gender
Gender distribution for Collier
Collier leans heavily male at 86.8% of total registrations, but 279 girls have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Collier as a male name
- Ranked #2,709 in 2024
- 48 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2013 (61 births)
Collier as a female name
- Ranked #4,480 in 2024
- 31 female births in 2024
- Peak: 2024 (31 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Collier leans strongly male. 1,289 people counted with this name were male (84.0%), compared with 245 female bearers (16.0%).
Popularity
Collier: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Collier from the 1890s through to the 2020s, spanning 14 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 609 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Collier remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Collier 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 Collier during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Colliers live
The SSA's state-level files cover 7 states and territories. Georgia, Texas, Alabama recorded the most babies named Collier, while Louisiana, Florida, Kentucky recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 73 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Collier
The name Collier is an occupational surname that originates from the Old French word "colier," meaning "collar maker" or "someone who worked with collars." It is derived from the Latin word "collarium," which means "collar." The name's roots can be traced back to the Middle Ages in France, where it was used to refer to the skilled artisans who crafted collars and neckpieces for clothing.
In the 13th century, the name Collier appeared in records and documents related to the guild system in France. During this time, artisans and craftsmen were organized into guilds based on their trade or occupation. The Collier guild was responsible for the production and sale of collars and neckpieces, which were essential components of clothing for both men and women.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Collier can be found in the "Livre des Métiers" (Book of Trades), a medieval document from Paris that listed and described various professions and trades in the city. This text, compiled in the late 13th century, provides valuable insights into the organization and regulation of different occupations during that era.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the first name Collier. One of the earliest examples is Collier de Nanteuil (c. 1330 – c. 1390), a French painter and manuscript illuminator who worked in Paris during the 14th century. His works can be found in numerous medieval manuscripts and religious texts from that period.
Another prominent figure was Sir Robert Collier (1512 – 1586), an English politician and member of Parliament during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. He served as the Treasurer of the Inner Temple, one of the four Inns of Court in London, and played a significant role in the legal and political spheres of his time.
In the realm of literature, one cannot overlook John Payne Collier (1789 – 1883), an English scholar and literary critic. He is best known for his controversial work involving the emendation and forgery of Shakespearean manuscripts, which sparked intense debates and controversies within the literary community of the 19th century.
In more recent times, the name Collier has also been associated with individuals in the entertainment industry. Constance Collier (1878 – 1955) was an English actress who enjoyed a successful career on both stage and screen, appearing in numerous plays and films throughout the early 20th century.
Lastly, it is worth mentioning Wilson Collier (1909 – 1959), an American author and illustrator known for his children's books, particularly those featuring the character Uncle Wigily. His works, which combined whimsical storytelling with charming illustrations, were beloved by generations of young readers in the mid-20th century.
People
Collier + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Collier 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
Collier: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Collier?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,829 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Collier 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 187,400 US residents.
Is Collier a common name?
We classify Collier as "Rare". It ranks above 93.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 2,108 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Collier most popular?
The single biggest year for Collier was 2023, when 80 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Collier is about 22 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Collier in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 1,530 people with the name Collier, or 0.51 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #9,196 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 Collier 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 Collier?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Collier leans strongly male. 1,289 people counted with this name were male (84.0%), compared with 245 female bearers (16.0%). 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 Collier?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Collier is White at 80.2%. The next largest groups are Black (12.4%) 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 Collier most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Collier in the 2020 Census, accounting for 80.2% (1,227 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 Collier in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Collier a male name?
Yes, 86.8% of people registered as Collier 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 Collier still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Collier 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 Collier 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 Collier as a first name?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.