Zeric
An invented name with no clear meaning or origin.
Name Census estimates that about 119 living Americans carry the first name Zeric. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Zeric today is around 21 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Zeric births was 2009 (12 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Zeric. 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
119
~ 1 in 2,880,289 Americans
Peak year
2009
12 babies that year
Average age
21
years old
2024 SSA rank
#12,286
Tracked since 1983
Census
Zeric in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 157 people with the first name Zeric, which placed it at #44,257 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
#44,257
National first-name rank
People counted
157
157 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
55.4% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Zeric
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Zeric is Black at 55.4%. The next largest groups are White (21.7%) and Hispanic (14.0%). 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 Zeric 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 Zeric at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American55.4% · 87
- White21.7% · 34
- Hispanic or Latino14.0% · 22
- Two or more races5.7% · 9
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.5% · 4
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 1
Popularity
Zeric: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Zeric from the 1980s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 49 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Zeric 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 Zeric during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Zeric
The name Zeric has its roots in the ancient Slavic languages, originating in the region now known as Eastern Europe. The earliest recorded use of this name dates back to the 9th century AD, during the time of the Kievan Rus', a medieval East Slavic state centered in modern-day Ukraine and Belarus.
In its original Slavic form, the name was spelled "Zerych" and was derived from the Proto-Slavic word "zer," meaning "bright" or "shining." This suggests that the name was initially given to individuals who possessed a radiant or luminous personality or appearance.
One of the earliest known historical figures to bear this name was Zerych of Novgorod, a prominent merchant and trader who lived in the 10th century. His name is recorded in several chronicles and trade documents from the time, indicating the importance of his role in the economic affairs of the region.
In the 12th century, a Bohemian nobleman named Zeric of Rosenberg was a prominent figure in the court of King Vladislav II. He was known for his military prowess and his loyalty to the crown, and his name appears in numerous historical accounts from that period.
During the Renaissance, a Italian artist and sculptor named Zeric Trevisan (1476-1544) gained recognition for his intricate wood carvings and religious artwork. His works can still be found in various churches and museums throughout Italy.
In the 18th century, Zeric Kalmyk (1708-1782) was a Russian explorer and cartographer who played a significant role in mapping the vast territories of Siberia and the Russian Far East. His detailed maps and journals were invaluable resources for subsequent expeditions and settlers in those regions.
Another notable figure was Zeric Visconti (1819-1891), an Italian nobleman and politician who served as a diplomat and ambassador for the Kingdom of Italy during the latter half of the 19th century. He was known for his skilled negotiations and his efforts to strengthen Italy's international relations.
While the name Zeric may have fallen out of widespread use in modern times, it remains a part of the rich cultural heritage of the Slavic peoples and serves as a reminder of the diverse and fascinating histories that have shaped the names we use today.
People
Zeric + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Zeric as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with Z
Other first names starting with Z with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Zeric: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Zeric?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 119 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Zeric 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 2,880,289 US residents.
Is Zeric a common name?
We classify Zeric as "Very Rare". It ranks above 67.1% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 121 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Zeric most popular?
The single biggest year for Zeric was 2009, when 12 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Zeric is about 21 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Zeric in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 157 people with the name Zeric, or 0.05 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #44,257 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 Zeric 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 Zeric?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Zeric appears almost entirely male. Of the 154 people counted with this name, 100.0% were male and only a very small share were female. 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 Zeric?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Zeric is Black at 55.4%. The next largest groups are White (21.7%) and Hispanic (14.0%). 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 Zeric most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Zeric in the 2020 Census, accounting for 55.4% (87 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 Zeric in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Zeric a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Zeric 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 Zeric still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Zeric 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 Zeric 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 are called Zeric?
You can see how many people have the name Zeric on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.