Heitor
An Ancient Greek masculine name signifying "defender of mankind".
Name Census estimates that about 325 living Americans carry the first name Heitor. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Heitor today is around 5 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Heitor births was 2023 (54 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Heitor. 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 Heitor with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
325
~ 1 in 1,054,629 Americans
Peak year
2023
54 babies that year
Average age
5
years old
2024 SSA rank
#2,567
Tracked since 2006
Census
Heitor in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 379 people with the first name Heitor, which placed it at #25,119 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
#25,119
National first-name rank
People counted
379
379 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
82.1% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Heitor
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Heitor is White at 82.1%. The next largest groups are Black (7.4%) and Hispanic (5.0%). 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 Heitor 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 Heitor at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White82.1% · 311
- Black or African American7.4% · 28
- Hispanic or Latino5.0% · 19
- Two or more races3.4% · 13
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.1% · 8
Popularity
Heitor: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Heitor from the 2000s through to the 2020s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2020s, with 222 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
Heitor 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 Heitor during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Heitors live
The SSA's state-level files cover 4 states and territories. Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Florida recorded the most babies named Heitor, while New Jersey, Florida, Pennsylvania recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 47 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Heitor
The name Heitor has its origins in Greek mythology and literature, tracing back to the ancient Greek name Hektor. It is derived from the word "hektōr," which means "to hold" or "to possess." The name was prominent in ancient Greece, particularly in the region of Ionia, located in modern-day Turkey.
One of the earliest and most famous references to the name Heitor is found in Homer's epic poem, the Iliad. Hektor, the eldest son of King Priam of Troy, was a prominent Trojan hero who fought bravely against the Greeks during the Trojan War. His character embodied courage, loyalty, and a strong sense of duty, making him a revered figure in Greek mythology.
The name Heitor gained popularity throughout the centuries, appearing in various historical records and literary works. In the Middle Ages, it was widely used in Portugal and other regions influenced by Greek and Roman cultures. One notable figure bearing this name was Heitor da Silveira (1475-1549), a Portuguese explorer and navigator who played a crucial role in the establishment of Portuguese colonies in India and the Moluccas.
During the Renaissance period, the name Heitor gained further recognition through the works of renowned writers and playwrights. William Shakespeare's play "Troilus and Cressida" featured Hector, the Trojan prince, as a central character, further perpetuating the name's association with heroism and valor.
In the 19th century, Heitor Villa-Lobos (1887-1959), a Brazilian composer and conductor, became one of the most famous bearers of this name. His compositions, which blended European classical traditions with Brazilian folk music, earned him international acclaim and recognition as one of the most influential figures in Latin American classical music.
Another notable figure was Heitor Herrera (1804-1872), a Cuban writer, poet, and journalist who played a significant role in the literary and cultural movement of his time. His works, which often reflected the struggles and aspirations of the Cuban people, earned him a place as one of the most influential voices in Cuban literature.
Throughout history, the name Heitor has been associated with bravery, strength, and cultural significance, transcending its ancient Greek origins and leaving an indelible mark on various societies and artistic expressions.
People
Heitor + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Heitor 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
Heitor: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Heitor?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 325 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Heitor 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 1,054,629 US residents.
Is Heitor a common name?
We classify Heitor as "Very Rare". It ranks above 80.1% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 327 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Heitor most popular?
The single biggest year for Heitor was 2023, when 54 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Heitor is about 5 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Heitor in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 379 people with the name Heitor, or 0.13 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #25,119 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 Heitor 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 Heitor?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Heitor appears almost entirely male. Of the 378 people counted with this name, 100.0% 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 Heitor?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Heitor is White at 82.1%. The next largest groups are Black (7.4%) and Hispanic (5.0%). 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 Heitor most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Heitor in the 2020 Census, accounting for 82.1% (311 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 Heitor in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Heitor a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Heitor 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 Heitor still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Heitor 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 Heitor 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 share the name Heitor?
Find out how many people have the name Heitor on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.