Porcher
One who cares for or tends to pigs.
Name Census estimates that about 10 living Americans carry the first name Porcher. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Porcher today is around 43 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Porcher births was 1981 (6 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Porcher. 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 Porcher. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
10
~ 1 in 34,275,434 Americans
Peak year
1981
6 babies that year
Average age
43
years old
1989 SSA rank
#13,891
Tracked since 1981
Popularity
Porcher: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Porcher 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 Porcher during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980s | 0 | 11 | 11 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Porcher
The given name Porcher originates from the Old French word "porcher", meaning a swineherd or a person who tends to pigs. Its roots can be traced back to the Latin word "porcarius", derived from "porcus", meaning pig. The name rose to prominence during the Middle Ages in various regions of Europe, particularly in France and England.
In medieval times, the name Porcher was commonly used as an occupational surname, identifying individuals whose profession involved caring for swine. As surnames became more widespread, some families adopted Porcher as a given name, reflecting their ancestral trade or occupation.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Porcher can be found in the Domesday Book, a manuscript record of the great survey of England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. The name appears in various spellings, such as Porcher, Porchier, and Porker, indicating its widespread use at the time.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Porcher. One of the earliest recorded was Porcher de Lisieux (c. 1120-1190), a French abbot and theologian who served as the Bishop of Lisieux in Normandy. Another prominent figure was Porcher de Glapion (c. 1270-1340), a French jurist and counselor to King Philip VI of France.
In the 16th century, Porcher de Richebourg (1490-1568) was a French nobleman and military commander who fought in the Italian Wars under Francis I of France. During the same period, Porcher de Charnisay (1515-1579) was a French explorer and colonist who established settlements in Acadia, modern-day Canada.
In the 18th century, Porcher Simons (1738-1817) was an American planter and politician who served as a delegate to the Continental Congress and the South Carolina State Legislature.
These are just a few examples of the many individuals who have carried the given name Porcher throughout history, reflecting its rich cultural heritage and enduring significance across various regions and time periods.
People
Porcher + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Porcher as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with P
Other first names starting with P with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Porcher: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Porcher?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 10 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Porcher 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 34,275,434 US residents.
Is Porcher a common name?
We classify Porcher as "Very Rare". It ranks above 28.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 11 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Porcher most popular?
The single biggest year for Porcher was 1981, when 6 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Porcher is about 43 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
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 Porcher in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Porcher a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Porcher 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.
Is Porcher still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Porcher 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 Porcher 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.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people have Porcher as a first name?
If you just want to know how many Americans are named Porcher, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.