Hilbert
A German masculine given name derived from a German surname meaning "bright, brilliant".
Name Census estimates that about 477 living Americans carry the first name Hilbert. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Hilbert today is around 72 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Hilbert births was 1922 (83 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Hilbert. 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
- • The typical person named Hilbert is about 72 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Hilberts were born before 1964.
People living today
477
~ 1 in 718,563 Americans
Peak year
1922
83 babies that year
Average age
72
years old
1998 SSA rank
#8,896
Tracked since 1900
Popularity
Hilbert: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Hilbert from the 1900s through to the 1990s, spanning 10 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 610 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1920s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Hilbert 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 Hilbert during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Hilberts live
The SSA's state-level files cover 15 states and territories. Wisconsin, Indiana, Michigan recorded the most babies named Hilbert, while Tennessee, Nebraska, Maryland recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 31 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Hilbert
The name Hilbert is a German given name derived from the Old German words "hil" meaning "battle" and "berht" meaning "bright" or "illustrious". It was originally a Germanic compound name that emerged during the Middle Ages, around the 9th or 10th century AD.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Hilbert dates back to the 11th century, when it was mentioned in a medieval German manuscript from the Rhineland region. The name was particularly popular in areas with strong Germanic cultural influences, such as parts of modern-day Germany, Austria, and Switzerland.
In religious texts and historical records, the name Hilbert has been associated with several notable individuals throughout history. One of the earliest was Saint Hilbert, a 12th-century Benedictine monk and abbot of the Michaelsberg Abbey in Bamberg, Germany. Another prominent figure was Hilbert of Lavardin, a 12th-century French bishop and scholar renowned for his writings on canon law.
Among the most famous bearers of the name Hilbert was the German mathematician David Hilbert (1862-1943), widely recognized as one of the most influential and universal mathematicians of the 19th and early 20th centuries. His groundbreaking contributions to various fields, including geometry, algebra, and mathematical physics, earned him numerous accolades and a lasting legacy in the field of mathematics.
Another notable individual was Hilbert von Bayern (1181-1198), a German nobleman and Prince-Bishop of Freising from the House of Wittelsbach. He played a significant role in the political affairs of the Holy Roman Empire during his lifetime.
In the realm of music, the name Hilbert was borne by the German composer and organist Hilbert Katzenberger (1915-2003), who was known for his works for organ and chamber ensembles.
These are just a few examples of individuals throughout history who have carried the given name Hilbert, reflecting its long-standing presence and cultural significance, particularly in Germanic regions.
People
Hilbert + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Hilbert 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
Hilbert: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Hilbert?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 477 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Hilbert 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 718,563 US residents.
Is Hilbert a common name?
We classify Hilbert as "Very Rare". It ranks above 84.1% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 2,020 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Hilbert most popular?
The single biggest year for Hilbert was 1922, when 83 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Hilbert is about 72 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Hilbert a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Hilbert 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.