Hae
A Korean name meaning "wisdom", "bright", or "enlightenment".
Name Census estimates that about 118 living Americans carry the first name Hae. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Hae today is around 40 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Hae births was 1990 (9 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Hae. 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
118
~ 1 in 2,904,698 Americans
Peak year
1990
9 babies that year
Average age
40
years old
2000 SSA rank
#15,912
Tracked since 1957
Census
Hae in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 2,391 people with the first name Hae, which placed it at #6,646 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
#6,646
National first-name rank
People counted
2.4K
2,391 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.8
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Asian and Pacific Islander
97.2% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hae
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Hae is Asian/Pacific Islander at 97.2%. The next largest groups are White (1.1%) 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 Hae 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 Hae at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander97.2% · 2,324
- White1.1% · 27
- Black or African American0.7% · 16
- Two or more races0.6% · 14
- Hispanic or Latino0.4% · 9
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.0% · 1
Popularity
Hae: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Hae from the 1950s through to the 2000s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 61 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
Hae 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 Hae during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Haes live
Origin
Meaning and history of Hae
The name Hae originates from Korean culture, where it is a traditional masculine given name. In Korean, the name is written as 해, which translates to "sun" or "sunshine." This name likely emerged during the ancient era of Korean history, as the sun held significant symbolic meaning in early Korean mythology and folklore.
Hae is believed to be derived from the Old Korean word "hae," which referred to the sun's rays or the act of shining. The name may have been bestowed upon children with the hope that they would bring light and warmth into the lives of their families, much like the sun.
While there are no specific references to the name Hae in ancient Korean texts or religious scriptures, the sun played a prominent role in Korean shamanism and traditional beliefs. The sun was often revered as a source of life, fertility, and prosperity, and it was believed to be the abode of the highest deities.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Hae was Hae Ui (1625-1690), a prominent Korean scholar and philosopher during the Joseon Dynasty. He was known for his contributions to the study of Confucian classics and his promotion of Neo-Confucian ideals.
Another notable figure was Hae Gwan (1857-1927), a Korean calligrapher and artist who was renowned for his mastery of traditional Korean calligraphy styles. His works are celebrated for their elegance and artistry, and they can be found in various museums and collections around the world.
In the field of literature, Hae Kyung (1888-1965) was a celebrated Korean poet and novelist. He is regarded as one of the pioneers of modern Korean literature and is best known for his poetry collections that explored themes of love, nature, and the human condition.
Hae Rang (1920-2009) was a prominent Korean sculptor who gained international recognition for her unique style and her ability to capture the essence of Korean culture in her works. Her sculptures can be found in various public spaces and museums across South Korea.
Lastly, Hae Won (born 1982) is a contemporary South Korean actor and singer. He has appeared in numerous television dramas and films, showcasing his versatility as a performer and gaining widespread popularity among Korean audiences.
These are just a few examples of notable individuals throughout history who have borne the name Hae, a name that carries significant cultural and symbolic meaning in Korean tradition.
People
Hae + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Hae as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with H
Other first names starting with H with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Hae: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Hae?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 118 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Hae 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 2,904,698 US residents.
Is Hae a common name?
We classify Hae as "Very Rare". It ranks above 67% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 127 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Hae most popular?
The single biggest year for Hae was 1990, when 9 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Hae is about 40 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Hae in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 2,391 people with the name Hae, or 0.79 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #6,646 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 Hae 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 Hae?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Hae leans strongly female. 1,915 people counted with this name were female (80.1%), compared with 475 male bearers (19.9%). 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 Hae?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Hae is Asian/Pacific Islander at 97.2%. The next largest groups are White (1.1%) 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 Hae most often in the Census?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest reported group for people named Hae in the 2020 Census, accounting for 97.2% (2,324 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 Hae in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Hae a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Hae 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 Hae still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Hae 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 Hae 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 have Hae as a first name?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.