Winter
Symbolizing the cold season, promising warmth despite chilling elements.
Name Census estimates that about 15,587 living Americans carry the first name Winter. It sits at #385 in the overall ranking, outside the top 50 but still well-represented. It is a predominantly female name (93.9% of registrations). The average person named Winter today is around 15 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Winter births was 2022 (1,116 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Winter. 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
- • Winter is a relatively new arrival in the SSA data. The average bearer is just 15 years old, meaning it gained most of its traction in the last two decades.
People living today
16K
~ 1 in 21,990 Americans
Peak year
2022
1,116 babies that year
Average age
15
years old
2024 SSA rank
#385
Tracked since 1954
Gender
Gender distribution for Winter
Winter leans heavily female at 93.9% of total registrations, but 958 boys have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Winter as a male name
- Ranked #2,358 in 2024
- 60 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2021 (71 births)
Winter as a female name
- Ranked #385 in 2024
- 816 female births in 2024
- Peak: 2022 (1,051 births)
Popularity
Winter: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Winter from the 1950s through to the 2020s, spanning 8 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 5,810 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
Winter 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 Winter during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Winters live
The SSA's state-level files cover 49 states and territories. California, Texas, New York recorded the most babies named Winter, while Wyoming, District of Columbia, Delaware recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 253 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Winter
The name Winter is an English word derived from the Old English term "wintertide", which referred to the coldest season of the year. This name's origins can be traced back to the Germanic roots "wintar" and "ventr", both words connected to the concept of wind or adverse weather conditions.
In ancient times, Winter was not commonly used as a given name. However, it appeared as a descriptive term in various texts, such as Beowulf, an Old English epic poem composed between the 8th and 11th centuries, where it was used to depict the harshness of the winter season.
The earliest recorded use of Winter as a given name dates back to the 16th century. One of the first notable individuals to bear this name was Winter de Worde, an English printer and publisher active in the late 15th and early 16th centuries.
Throughout history, several notable figures have been associated with the name Winter. One such individual was Winter de Wynter (c. 1495-1589), an English judge and law writer who served as Chief Justice of the Common Pleas during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I.
Another prominent figure was Winter Quartermain (1609-1665), an English soldier and Member of Parliament who fought for the Parliamentarian forces during the English Civil War.
In the realm of literature, Winter Graham (1805-1892) was an American novelist and playwright known for her works exploring social issues and women's rights.
Moving to more recent times, Winter Quarters Maxwell (1858-1940) was an American military officer who served in the Spanish-American War and received the Medal of Honor for his actions during the Philippine-American War.
Additionally, Winter Laake (1898-1967) was a Finnish athlete who competed in the 1924 Summer Olympics and won a silver medal in the men's triple jump event.
While not as commonly used as some other names, Winter has had a presence throughout history, with individuals bearing this name making significant contributions in various fields, including law, literature, military service, and athletics.
People
Winter + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Winter as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with W
Other first names starting with W with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Winter: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Winter?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 15,587 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Winter 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 21,990 US residents.
Is Winter a common name?
We classify Winter as "Uncommon". It ranks above 98.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 15,832 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Winter most popular?
The single biggest year for Winter was 2022, when 1,116 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Winter is about 15 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Winter a female name?
Yes, 93.9% of people registered as Winter 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.