first name
HERSCHEL
of 53,615 first names recorded in the 2020 Census
Of the 3,728 people named Herschel, 73.8% reported their origin as White, 18.5% as Black and 2.8% as two or more races. 99.1% are male. These count how people described themselves on the 2020 Census, not where the name comes from.
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Herschel peaked in 1921, when 277 babies got the name.
At least 10,674 babies have been given the name since 1880. Years SSA withheld, because fewer than 5 were born, are skipped rather than drawn as zero. * 2025 is the newest year published and it undercounts: a card application is filed some time after a birth.
Herschel by decade
Among all names given to American babies, its best decade was the 1910s, when it ranked #792. The largest share of babies named Herschel, 36.5%, were born between 1901 and 1927, the Greatest Generation's birth years.
Rank counts both sexes together, among every name SSA recorded that decade; the number under it is births. The 2020s run only to 2025. Generation years follow Pew Research Center, which has not named a generation after 2012.
Where Herschel is most common
Compared with all babies born in each state since 1910, Herschel has been most common in Indiana (5×), Kentucky (4.4×), and Georgia (3.9×), and least common in Pennsylvania (0.09×).
6,197 births recorded by state, 1910–2025. 2× means twice as common as nationally. States with fewer than 30 such births are left blank, and SSA withholds any year with fewer than 5 in a state, so small states read low.
Either side of Herschel
Spelled almost the same
6 first names in the 2020 Census spelled within a letter or two of Herschel, most common first.
Also a last name
As a last name, Herschel ranks #89,231 of 156,621, with 223 people. See Herschel as a last name
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