Hydia
A feminine name of modern invention, possibly derived from 'hydria' meaning a water vessel.
Name Census estimates that about 150 living Americans carry the first name Hydia. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Hydia today is around 29 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Hydia births was 1996 (44 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Hydia. 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
150
~ 1 in 2,285,029 Americans
Peak year
1996
44 babies that year
Average age
29
years old
2002 SSA rank
#8,478
Tracked since 1993
Popularity
Hydia: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Hydia from the 1990s through to the 2000s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 122 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
Hydia 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 Hydia during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Hydias live
Origin
Meaning and history of Hydia
The name Hydia is an intriguing one, with its roots traced back to ancient Greece. Derived from the Greek word "hydor," meaning water, this name was initially associated with the deities and nymphs linked to bodies of water, such as rivers, lakes, and oceans. The earliest recorded mention of the name can be found in the writings of the ancient Greek playwright Aeschylus, who lived in the 5th century BCE.
In Greek mythology, Hydia was the name of a Naiad, a type of water nymph who presided over freshwater rivers, streams, and marshes. These mythological figures were revered for their beauty and their ability to bestow fertility and abundance upon the lands they inhabited. The name Hydia was often invoked in rituals and ceremonies related to water, agriculture, and the cycle of life.
As the centuries passed, the name Hydia gradually spread beyond the confines of ancient Greece. In the 4th century CE, a Christian martyr named Hydia was recorded in the hagiographies (writings about saints) of the early Church. She was said to have suffered persecution and martyrdom for her unwavering faith during the reign of the Roman Emperor Diocletian.
During the Byzantine era, the name Hydia gained further prominence. One notable bearer was Hydia of Constantinople, a 9th-century Byzantine noblewoman and philanthropist. She was renowned for her charitable works and her support of the arts and learning.
In the realm of literature, the name Hydia appeared in the epic poem "The Aeneid" by the Roman poet Virgil. In this work, Hydia was a minor character, a Naiad who accompanied the goddess Venus.
Other notable individuals named Hydia throughout history include Hydia of Halicarnassus, a 5th-century BCE Greek historian and writer; Hydia of Lesbos, a 3rd-century BCE Greek poet and philosopher; and Hydia of Antioch, a 2nd-century CE Christian martyr and saint.
While the name Hydia has its roots in ancient Greek culture and mythology, it has transcended those origins and been embraced by various societies and traditions over the centuries, making it a name with a rich and diverse history.
People
Hydia + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Hydia 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
Hydia: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Hydia?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 150 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Hydia 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 2,285,029 US residents.
Is Hydia a common name?
We classify Hydia as "Very Rare". It ranks above 70.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 154 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Hydia most popular?
The single biggest year for Hydia was 1996, when 44 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Hydia is about 29 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Hydia a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Hydia 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.
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.