Soterios
A masculine name of Greek origin meaning "savior" or "deliverer".
Name Census estimates that about 4 living Americans carry the first name Soterios. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Soterios today is around 66 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Soterios births was 1965 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Soterios. 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 Soterios is about 66 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Soterios' were born before 1970.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Soterios. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
4
~ 1 in 85,688,585 Americans
Peak year
1965
5 babies that year
Average age
66
years old
1965 SSA rank
#4,360
Tracked since 1965
Census
Soterios in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 106 people with the first name Soterios, which placed it at #52,574 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
#52,574
National first-name rank
People counted
106
106 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.0
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
89.6% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Soterios
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Soterios is White at 89.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.7%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.9%). 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 Soterios 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 Soterios at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.6% · 95
- Hispanic or Latino5.7% · 6
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.9% · 2
- Two or more races1.9% · 2
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
Popularity
Soterios: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Soterios 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 Soterios during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 5 | 0 | 5 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Soterios
The given name Soterios has its origins in the Greek language and culture, with its earliest known usage dating back to ancient times. The name is derived from the Greek word "sōtērios," which means "savior" or "deliverer," reflecting its association with concepts of salvation and deliverance.
In Greek mythology, Soterios was an epithet used to refer to various deities, particularly Zeus, who was revered as the protector and savior of humanity. The name was also associated with the god Asclepius, the Greek deity of medicine and healing, further reinforcing its connotations of deliverance from suffering and illness.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Soterios can be found in the works of ancient Greek historians and philosophers, such as Plutarch and Pausanias, who mentioned individuals bearing this name. Additionally, the name appears in various ancient inscriptions and artifacts from the Hellenistic period.
Throughout history, several notable figures have borne the name Soterios. One of the most famous was Soterios Kapnisis (1637-1672), a Greek scholar and teacher who made significant contributions to the preservation and promotion of Greek literature and culture during the Ottoman rule.
Another prominent individual was Soterios Chios (1791-1857), a Greek merchant and philanthropist who played a crucial role in the Greek War of Independence against the Ottoman Empire. His financial support and diplomatic efforts were instrumental in the success of the Greek revolutionary movement.
In the realm of theology, Soterios Siropoulou (1913-2009) was a prominent Greek Orthodox hierarch who served as the Metropolitan of Theoupolis and held various influential positions within the Greek Orthodox Church.
The name Soterios also found its way into the world of sports, with Soterios Gyftopoulos (1939-2020) being a renowned Greek footballer who represented his country in the 1964 European Nations' Cup and the 1968 Summer Olympics.
Another notable bearer of the name was Soterios Demetriou (1914-1988), a Cypriot politician and lawyer who served as the Vice President of Cyprus from 1960 to 1973 and played a significant role in the country's political landscape during his tenure.
While the name Soterios has its roots in ancient Greek culture, it has been adopted and used across various regions and communities throughout history, reflecting its enduring appeal and symbolic associations with deliverance and salvation.
People
Soterios + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Soterios as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with S
Other first names starting with S with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Soterios: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Soterios?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 4 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Soterios 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 85,688,585 US residents.
Is Soterios a common name?
We classify Soterios as "Very Rare". It ranks above 6.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 5 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Soterios most popular?
The single biggest year for Soterios was 1965, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Soterios is about 66 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Soterios in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 106 people with the name Soterios, or 0.04 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #52,574 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 Soterios 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 Soterios?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Soterios leans strongly male. 103 people counted with this name were male (98.1%), compared with 2 female bearers (1.9%). 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 Soterios?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Soterios is White at 89.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.7%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.9%). 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 Soterios most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Soterios in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.6% (95 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 Soterios in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Soterios a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Soterios 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 Soterios still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Soterios 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 Soterios 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 Soterios?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.