Cristi
A feminine given name of Latin origin meaning "follower of Christ".
Name Census estimates that about 2,798 living Americans carry the first name Cristi. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Cristi today is around 52 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Cristi births was 1973 (159 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Cristi. 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 Cristi with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
2.8K
~ 1 in 122,500 Americans
Peak year
1973
159 babies that year
Average age
52
years old
2019 SSA rank
#12,744
Tracked since 1948
Census
Cristi in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 3,092 people with the first name Cristi, which placed it at #5,519 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
#5,519
National first-name rank
People counted
3.1K
3,092 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
1.0
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
81.0% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Cristi
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Cristi is White at 81.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (11.3%) and Two or More Races (3.2%). 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 Cristi 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 Cristi at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White81.0% · 2,506
- Hispanic or Latino11.3% · 350
- Two or more races3.2% · 99
- Black or African American2.5% · 78
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.4% · 42
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 17
Popularity
Cristi: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Cristi from the 1940s through to the 2010s, spanning 8 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1970s, with 1,267 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
Cristi 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 Cristi during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Cristis live
The SSA's state-level files cover 28 states and territories. Texas, California, Ohio recorded the most babies named Cristi, while West Virginia, Utah, Oregon recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 43 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Cristi
The name Cristi is a Romanian variant of the name Christian, which has its roots in the ancient Greek language. The name Christian is derived from the Greek word "Christianos," meaning "follower of Christ." It is a name with a strong religious and spiritual significance, particularly in the Christian faith.
The name Cristi became popular in Romania as a variation of Christian, reflecting the country's cultural and linguistic influences. The earliest recorded use of the name Cristi can be traced back to the Middle Ages, when Christianity spread throughout Europe, including the region that is now modern-day Romania.
Historically, the name Cristi has been associated with several notable figures. One of the earliest and most significant figures bearing this name was Cristi Bucur, a Romanian ruler who reigned in the 16th century. He was known for his efforts to defend his principality against Ottoman invasions and for his support of the Orthodox Church.
Another notable bearer of the name Cristi was Cristi Puiu, a renowned Romanian film director and screenwriter born in 1967. His films, such as "The Death of Mr. Lazarescu" and "Aurora," have received critical acclaim and numerous awards at international film festivals.
In the realm of sports, Cristi Chivu, a former Romanian professional football player, made a significant impact. Born in 1980, he played as a defender for various clubs, including Ajax, Roma, and Inter Milan, and represented the Romanian national team in several major tournaments.
Cristi Borcea, born in 1968, is a controversial figure in Romanian business and sports circles. He was a successful entrepreneur and the former owner of the football club Dinamo București, but his career was marred by legal issues and controversies.
Lastly, Cristi Minculescu, born in 1953, is a celebrated Romanian singer and composer known for his contributions to the Romanian rock and pop music scene. His work has spanned several decades and has earned him a dedicated following among music enthusiasts in Romania and beyond.
While the name Cristi has its origins in the Christian faith and has been borne by notable individuals throughout history, it has also become a popular name choice in modern times, transcending religious boundaries and cultural contexts.
People
Cristi + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Cristi 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
Cristi: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Cristi?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 2,798 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Cristi 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 122,500 US residents.
Is Cristi a common name?
We classify Cristi as "Rare". It ranks above 94.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 3,198 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Cristi most popular?
The single biggest year for Cristi was 1973, when 159 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Cristi is about 52 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Cristi in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 3,092 people with the name Cristi, or 1.02 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #5,519 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 Cristi 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 Cristi?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Cristi leans strongly female. 3,049 people counted with this name were female (98.7%), compared with 41 male bearers (1.3%). 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 Cristi?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Cristi is White at 81.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (11.3%) and Two or More Races (3.2%). 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 Cristi most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Cristi in the 2020 Census, accounting for 81.0% (2,506 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 Cristi in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Cristi a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Cristi 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 Cristi still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Cristi 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 Cristi 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 Americans are named Cristi?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.