Hoss
A masculine name of uncertain origin, possibly a diminutive form of "horse".
Name Census estimates that about 89 living Americans carry the first name Hoss. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Hoss today is around 12 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Hoss births was 2023 (11 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Hoss. 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 Hoss. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
89
~ 1 in 3,851,172 Americans
Peak year
2023
11 babies that year
Average age
12
years old
2024 SSA rank
#8,550
Tracked since 1973
Census
Hoss in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 237 people with the first name Hoss, which placed it at #34,427 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
#34,427
National first-name rank
People counted
237
237 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
84.0% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hoss
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Hoss is White at 84.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (8.0%) and Hispanic (3.0%). 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 Hoss 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 Hoss at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White84.0% · 199
- Two or more races8.0% · 19
- Hispanic or Latino3.0% · 7
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.5% · 6
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.1% · 5
- Black or African American0.4% · 1
Popularity
Hoss: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Hoss from the 1970s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2020s, with 43 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
Hoss 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 Hoss 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 Hoss
The name Hoss is believed to have its origins in the English language, specifically as a shortened form of the word "horse." It is thought to have emerged as a nickname or pet name in the late 18th or early 19th century, during a time when horses played a crucial role in transportation and daily life.
The earliest recorded use of the name Hoss can be traced back to the 19th century in various literary works and historical records. One notable example is found in Mark Twain's novel "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn," published in 1884, where the character Hoss Williams is mentioned.
Throughout history, the name Hoss has been associated with individuals known for their strength, resilience, and hardworking nature, much like the animal it is derived from. One of the most famous bearers of this name was Hoss Cartwright, a fictional character from the popular television series "Bonanza," which aired from 1959 to 1973. Portrayed by actor Dan Blocker (1928-1972), Hoss Cartwright was the gentle giant of the Cartwright family and became an iconic figure in American pop culture.
Another notable individual with the name Hoss was Hoss Prather (1886-1972), a professional baseball player who played for the St. Louis Cardinals and the New York Giants in the early 20th century. He was known for his powerful hitting and earned the nickname "Hoss" due to his large stature and physical strength.
In the world of motorsports, Hoss Ellington (1913-1995) was a legendary race car driver who competed in the Indianapolis 500 and other major racing events during the mid-20th century. His fearless driving style and numerous victories on the track earned him a place in the Motorsports Hall of Fame.
Another historical figure who bore the name Hoss was Hoss Brock (1917-2003), a World War II veteran and recipient of the Purple Heart. After serving in the military, he became a respected farmer and community leader in his hometown of Brock, Texas.
While the name Hoss may not be as common today as it once was, its unique history and association with strength, resilience, and hard work have made it a memorable and enduring part of the English language and cultural heritage.
People
Hoss + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Hoss 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
Hoss: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Hoss?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 89 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Hoss 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 3,851,172 US residents.
Is Hoss a common name?
We classify Hoss as "Very Rare". It ranks above 62.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 90 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Hoss most popular?
The single biggest year for Hoss was 2023, when 11 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Hoss is about 12 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Hoss in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 237 people with the name Hoss, or 0.08 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #34,427 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 Hoss 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 Hoss?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Hoss leans strongly male. 235 people counted with this name were male (98.3%), compared with 4 female bearers (1.7%). 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 Hoss?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Hoss is White at 84.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (8.0%) and Hispanic (3.0%). 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 Hoss most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Hoss in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.0% (199 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 Hoss in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Hoss a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Hoss 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 Hoss still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Hoss 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 Hoss 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 the name Hoss?
If you just want to know how many Americans are named Hoss, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.