Crescent
A name derived from the curved shape of the waxing or waning moon.
Name Census estimates that about 102 living Americans carry the first name Crescent. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Crescent today is around 43 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Crescent births was 1977 (15 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Crescent. 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
102
~ 1 in 3,360,337 Americans
Peak year
1977
15 babies that year
Average age
43
years old
2020 SSA rank
#12,427
Tracked since 1971
Census
Crescent in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 262 people with the first name Crescent, which placed it at #32,242 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
#32,242
National first-name rank
People counted
262
262 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
54.2% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Crescent
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Crescent is White at 54.2%. The next largest groups are Black (26.7%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (7.3%). 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 Crescent 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 Crescent at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White54.2% · 142
- Black or African American26.7% · 70
- Asian and Pacific Islander7.3% · 19
- Hispanic or Latino6.9% · 18
- Two or more races4.2% · 11
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 2
Popularity
Crescent: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Crescent from the 1970s through to the 2020s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1970s, with 65 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1970s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Crescent 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 Crescent during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Crescent
The given name Crescent has its origins in the English language, deriving from the word "crescent," which means a curved shape resembling the waxing or waning moon. This name is believed to have emerged during the late 18th or early 19th century, a period when astronomical and celestial names started gaining popularity.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Crescent can be traced back to the late 19th century. Crescent Pemberton Ware, an American businessman and politician, was born in 1866 in Mississippi, United States. He served as a member of the Mississippi State Senate and was known for his involvement in the lumber industry.
In the early 20th century, Crescent Dragonwagon, an American author and feminist activist, was born in 1952. She is best known for her work on literature, cookbooks, and advocacy for women's rights. Her unique name reflects the growing interest in unconventional and nature-inspired names during that time period.
Another notable figure with the name Crescent was Crescent Suzette Freeman, an American singer and actress born in 1939. She was active in the entertainment industry during the 1950s and 1960s, appearing in various television shows and musicals.
In the literary world, Crescent Vesta Bartlett, an American poet and writer, was born in 1824. She was known for her poetry collections and contributions to various publications during the 19th century.
Additionally, Crescent Elaine Roberts, an American artist and sculptor, was born in 1943. She gained recognition for her innovative works in metal sculpture, often incorporating themes of nature and celestial elements.
While the name Crescent may not have been widely used throughout history, it reflects a unique and intriguing connection to the celestial realm. Its emergence during the late 18th and early 19th centuries aligns with the growing interest in astronomy and the exploration of the natural world during that period.
People
Crescent + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Crescent 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
Crescent: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Crescent?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 102 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Crescent 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 3,360,337 US residents.
Is Crescent a common name?
We classify Crescent as "Very Rare". It ranks above 64.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 110 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Crescent most popular?
The single biggest year for Crescent was 1977, when 15 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Crescent is about 43 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Crescent in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 262 people with the name Crescent, or 0.09 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #32,242 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 Crescent 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 Crescent?
The 2020 Census sex table shows Crescent on both sides of the split. Of the 271 people counted with this name, 68 were male (25.1%) and 203 were female (74.9%). 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 Crescent?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Crescent is White at 54.2%. The next largest groups are Black (26.7%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (7.3%). 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 Crescent most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Crescent in the 2020 Census, accounting for 54.2% (142 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 Crescent in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Crescent a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Crescent 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 Crescent still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Crescent 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 Crescent 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 are named Crescent?
If you just want to know how many people share the name Crescent, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.