Gilmar
A Portuguese masculine name possibly derived from the Germanic elements "gīsl" (hostage) and "mær" (famous).
Name Census estimates that about 131 living Americans carry the first name Gilmar. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Gilmar today is around 25 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Gilmar births was 1999 (11 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Gilmar. 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
131
~ 1 in 2,616,445 Americans
Peak year
1999
11 babies that year
Average age
25
years old
2023 SSA rank
#11,291
Tracked since 1989
Popularity
Gilmar: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Gilmar from the 1980s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 69 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1990s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Gilmar 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 Gilmar 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 Gilmar
The name Gilmar is of Portuguese origin, derived from the Germanic elements 'Gil' (meaning youth or servant) and 'mar' (meaning famous or renowned). It likely emerged during the Middle Ages when Portuguese was heavily influenced by other Romance languages and Germanic tongues.
Gilmar was a relatively uncommon name in medieval Portugal, with few historical records mentioning individuals bearing this moniker. However, some notable figures include Gilmar de Santarém, a 13th-century knight who fought in the Reconquista against the Moors, and Gilmar de Coimbra, a 14th-century poet and troubadour known for his love ballads.
As Portuguese explorers and settlers ventured across the globe, the name Gilmar found its way to various colonies and territories. One of the earliest recorded instances outside of Portugal was Gilmar de Sousa, a 16th-century navigator and explorer who accompanied Vasco da Gama on his voyages to India.
In the 17th century, a Gilmar de Almeida was a prominent figure in the Portuguese colonization of Brazil, serving as a colonial administrator and landowner in the region that is now the state of Bahia. Around the same time, a Gilmar de Oliveira was a Jesuit missionary who worked among indigenous communities in present-day Paraguay.
Moving into the 19th century, Gilmar Fernandes was a Brazilian abolitionist and activist who campaigned tirelessly for the end of slavery in his country. He was born in 1821 and played a pivotal role in the eventual abolition of slavery in Brazil in 1888.
While not an exhaustive list, these are some notable individuals throughout history who bore the name Gilmar, illustrating its journey from medieval Portugal to various parts of the world touched by Portuguese exploration and influence.
People
Gilmar + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Gilmar as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with G
Other first names starting with G with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Gilmar: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Gilmar?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 131 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Gilmar 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 2,616,445 US residents.
Is Gilmar a common name?
We classify Gilmar as "Very Rare". It ranks above 68.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 133 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Gilmar most popular?
The single biggest year for Gilmar was 1999, when 11 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Gilmar is about 25 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Gilmar a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Gilmar 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.
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.