Demeter
Greek goddess of fertility, agriculture, and the harvest cycle.
Name Census estimates that about 5 living Americans carry the first name Demeter. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 50.0% of registrations being female. The average person named Demeter today is around 8 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Demeter births was 1920 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Demeter. 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.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Demeter. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
5
~ 1 in 68,550,868 Americans
Peak year
1920
5 babies that year
Average age
8
years old
1920 SSA rank
#4,457
Tracked since 1920
Gender
Gender distribution for Demeter
Demeter is one of the more evenly split names in the SSA data. Of the 10 total registrations, 5 (50.0%) were male and 5 (50.0%) were female.
Demeter as a male name
- Ranked #4,457 in 1920
- 5 male births in 1920
- Peak: 1920 (5 births)
Demeter as a female name
- Ranked #15,715 in 2020
- 5 female births in 2020
- Peak: 2020 (5 births)
Popularity
Demeter: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Demeter from the 1920s through to the 2020s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2020s, with 5 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Demeter 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 Demeter 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 Demeter
The name Demeter originates from ancient Greek mythology and religion. It is the name of the goddess of agriculture, grain, and fertility. The name is derived from the Greek word "demetra," which means "earth mother" or "mother earth." The earliest recorded use of the name dates back to ancient Greek texts and religious writings from around the 8th century BCE.
Demeter was one of the most important and revered deities in ancient Greek culture. She was worshipped throughout Greece and played a central role in the Eleusinian Mysteries, a religious festival celebrated in honor of her and her daughter Persephone. The myth of Demeter and Persephone's abduction by Hades, the god of the underworld, was a central story in Greek mythology, and it was believed to explain the changing seasons.
One of the earliest and most famous references to Demeter can be found in the Homeric Hymn to Demeter, an ancient Greek hymn dating back to around the 7th century BCE. The hymn recounts the story of Demeter's grief and search for her daughter Persephone after she was abducted by Hades.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals named Demeter. One of the earliest recorded was Demeter, an ancient Greek poet and philosopher who lived around the 5th century BCE. Another notable figure was Demeter of Alexandria, a female philosopher and mathematician who lived in the 3rd century CE and is credited with writing several important works on geometry and mechanics.
In more recent times, there have been several notable women named Demeter, including Demeter Georgievna Bedny (1905-1977), a Soviet sculptor and artist known for her monumental works celebrating Soviet themes. Demeter Daskalakis (1912-1988) was a Greek actress and theater director who was a prominent figure in the Greek theater scene in the mid-20th century.
Demeter has also been used as a name in literature and popular culture. For example, it was the name of a character in the novel "The Corn Maiden" by Paulette Jiles, published in 2005. The name has also been used in various works of art and films, reflecting its enduring connection to ancient Greek mythology and culture.
People
Demeter + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Demeter as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with D
Other first names starting with D with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Demeter: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Demeter?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 5 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Demeter 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 68,550,868 US residents.
Is Demeter a common name?
We classify Demeter as "Very Rare". It ranks above 18.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 10 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Demeter most popular?
The single biggest year for Demeter was 1920, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Demeter is about 8 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
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 Demeter in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Demeter a female name?
Yes, 50.0% of people registered as Demeter 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 Demeter still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Demeter 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 Demeter 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.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people are named Demeter?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.