Jerre
An anglicized masculine name of uncertain Germanic origin, possibly meaning "wanderer".
Name Census estimates that about 663 living Americans carry the first name Jerre. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 56.3% of registrations being male. The average person named Jerre today is around 74 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Jerre births was 1942 (52 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Jerre. 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
- • Jerre sits in rare territory as a truly gender-neutral name, given to boys and girls in near-equal numbers.
- • The typical person named Jerre is about 74 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Jerres were born before 1962.
People living today
663
~ 1 in 516,975 Americans
Peak year
1942
52 babies that year
Average age
74
years old
1984 SSA rank
#5,508
Tracked since 1914
Census
Jerre in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 1,021 people with the first name Jerre, which placed it at #12,243 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
#12,243
National first-name rank
People counted
1.0K
1,021 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.3
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
88.7% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Jerre
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Jerre is White at 88.7%. The next largest groups are Black (6.9%) and Hispanic (2.0%). 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 Jerre 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 Jerre at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.7% · 906
- Black or African American6.9% · 70
- Hispanic or Latino2.0% · 20
- Two or more races1.9% · 19
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.3% · 3
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 3
Gender
Gender distribution for Jerre
Jerre is one of the more evenly split names in the SSA data. Of the 1,412 total registrations, 795 (56.3%) were male and 617 (43.7%) were female.
Jerre as a male name
- Ranked #6,784 in 1984
- 5 male births in 1984
- Peak: 1942 (28 births)
Jerre as a female name
- Ranked #5,508 in 1965
- 7 female births in 1965
- Peak: 1952 (35 births)
2020 Census snapshot
The 2020 Census sex table shows Jerre on both sides of the split. Of the 1,018 people counted with this name, 563 were male (55.3%) and 455 were female (44.7%).
Popularity
Jerre: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Jerre from the 1910s through to the 1980s, spanning 8 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1940s, with 432 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1940s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Jerre 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 Jerre during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Jerres live
The SSA's state-level files cover 5 states and territories. Texas, Alabama, Missouri recorded the most babies named Jerre, while Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 23 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Jerre
The name Jerre has its origins in the ancient Germanic languages, with roots that can be traced back to the 5th century AD. It is derived from the Old Germanic word "ger," which translates to "spear" or "lance." This connection to weaponry suggests that the name may have been given to individuals who were skilled warriors or hunters.
In the early Middle Ages, the name Jerre gained popularity across various regions of Europe, particularly in areas inhabited by Germanic tribes such as the Franks, Saxons, and Alemanni. It was often spelled with variations like "Ger," "Gerre," or "Gerry."
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Jerre can be found in the Frankish Annals, a historical chronicle from the 9th century AD. The text mentions a man named "Gerric" who served as a military commander under the Frankish king Charlemagne.
Throughout the medieval period, the name Jerre was borne by several notable figures. One of the most famous was Jerre de Hainaut (1265-1337), a French nobleman and military leader who played a significant role in the Hundred Years' War between England and France.
In the 16th century, Jerre Cornelisz (1558-1638) was a Dutch painter and engraver known for his intricate still-life works. He was a member of the Haarlem Guild of St. Luke and is considered one of the pioneers of the Dutch Golden Age of painting.
Another prominent individual with the name Jerre was Jerre Herdringen (1622-1683), a German composer and musician who served as the Kapellmeister (chapel master) to the Prince-Elector of Saxony in Dresden.
Moving forward to the 18th century, Jerre Gilliam (1738-1818) was an American pioneer and frontiersman who played a significant role in the settlement of Kentucky. He was a close associate of Daniel Boone and participated in the defense of Boonesborough during the American Revolutionary War.
As the name Jerre evolved over time, it underwent various spelling changes and adaptations in different regions and cultures. While it may not be as common today as some other names, its rich historical roots and connections to warrior traditions and artistic achievements make it a name with a fascinating legacy.
People
Jerre + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Jerre as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with J
Other first names starting with J with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Jerre: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Jerre?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 663 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Jerre 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 516,975 US residents.
Is Jerre a common name?
We classify Jerre as "Very Rare". It ranks above 87.1% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,412 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Jerre most popular?
The single biggest year for Jerre was 1942, when 52 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Jerre is about 74 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Jerre in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 1,021 people with the name Jerre, or 0.34 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #12,243 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 Jerre 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 Jerre?
The 2020 Census sex table shows Jerre on both sides of the split. Of the 1,018 people counted with this name, 563 were male (55.3%) and 455 were female (44.7%). 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 Jerre?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Jerre is White at 88.7%. The next largest groups are Black (6.9%) and Hispanic (2.0%). 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 Jerre most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Jerre in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.7% (906 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 Jerre in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Jerre a male name?
Yes, 56.3% of people registered as Jerre 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 Jerre still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Jerre 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 Jerre 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 Jerre?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.