Cristoval
A Hispanic masculine name meaning "bearer of Christ" or "Christ bearer".
Name Census estimates that about 414 living Americans carry the first name Cristoval. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Cristoval today is around 31 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Cristoval births was 2001 (22 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Cristoval. 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
414
~ 1 in 827,909 Americans
Peak year
2001
22 babies that year
Average age
31
years old
2020 SSA rank
#12,417
Tracked since 1921
Census
Cristoval in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 442 people with the first name Cristoval, which placed it at #22,485 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
#22,485
National first-name rank
People counted
442
442 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Hispanic or Latino
95.2% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Cristoval
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Cristoval is Hispanic at 95.2%. The next largest groups are White (2.7%) and Black (0.7%). 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 Cristoval 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 Cristoval at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino95.2% · 421
- White2.7% · 12
- Black or African American0.7% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 2
- Two or more races0.5% · 2
Popularity
Cristoval: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Cristoval from the 1920s through to the 2020s, spanning 9 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 127 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Cristoval 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 Cristoval during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Cristovals live
Origin
Meaning and history of Cristoval
Cristoval is a masculine given name with roots in the Spanish and Portuguese languages. The name is derived from the Late Latin name Christophorus, which itself is a combination of the Greek words "Christos" (meaning "Christ") and "phoros" (meaning "bearer" or "carrier").
The name Cristoval gained prominence during the Middle Ages, particularly in regions with strong Christian influence, such as the Iberian Peninsula and parts of Latin America. It was often associated with the legend of St. Christopher, who was believed to have carried the Christ child across a river, earning him the title "Christ-bearer."
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Cristoval can be found in the 12th-century Spanish epic poem "El Cantar de Mio Cid," where a character named Cristoval is mentioned. The name also appears in various medieval religious texts and chronicles, further solidifying its association with Christian tradition.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Cristoval. One of the most famous is Cristoval Colon, better known as Christopher Columbus (1451-1506), the Italian explorer who sailed across the Atlantic Ocean and initiated the Spanish colonization of the Americas.
Another prominent figure was Cristoval de Vaca (c. 1490-1558), a Spanish explorer and chronicler who is known for his expeditions in what is now the southwestern United States and his accounts of interactions with Native American tribes.
In the realm of art, Cristoval de Villalpando (c. 1649-1714) was a renowned Mexican painter and architect who contributed significantly to the Baroque style in New Spain (now Mexico).
Cristoval Balenciaga (1895-1972) was a Spanish fashion designer who founded the iconic Balenciaga fashion house and is considered one of the masters of 20th-century couture.
Additionally, Cristoval Rojas (1857-1890) was a Venezuelan poet and writer who is regarded as a significant figure in the country's literary tradition.
While the name Cristoval has evolved over time and across different cultures, it remains deeply rooted in its religious and historical origins, serving as a testament to the enduring influence of Christian tradition and the cultural exchange between Spain, Portugal, and the Americas.
People
Cristoval + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Cristoval 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
Cristoval: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Cristoval?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 414 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Cristoval 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 827,909 US residents.
Is Cristoval a common name?
We classify Cristoval as "Very Rare". It ranks above 82.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 437 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Cristoval most popular?
The single biggest year for Cristoval was 2001, when 22 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Cristoval is about 31 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Cristoval in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 442 people with the name Cristoval, or 0.15 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #22,485 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 Cristoval 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 Cristoval?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Cristoval appears almost entirely male. Of the 437 people counted with this name, 99.3% were male and only a very small share were female. 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 Cristoval?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Cristoval is Hispanic at 95.2%. The next largest groups are White (2.7%) and Black (0.7%). 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 Cristoval most often in the Census?
Hispanic is the largest reported group for people named Cristoval in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.2% (421 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 Cristoval in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Cristoval a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Cristoval 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 Cristoval still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Cristoval 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 Cristoval 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 Cristoval?
Find out how many people share the name Cristoval on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.