Birch
A topographic name denoting someone who lived near birch trees.
Name Census estimates that about 275 living Americans carry the first name Birch. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Birch today is around 21 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Birch births was 2017 (20 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Birch. 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.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Birch with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
275
~ 1 in 1,246,379 Americans
Peak year
2017
20 babies that year
Average age
21
years old
2023 SSA rank
#9,873
Tracked since 1913
Census
Birch in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 388 people with the first name Birch, which placed it at #24,718 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
#24,718
National first-name rank
People counted
388
388 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
84.0% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Birch
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Birch is White at 84.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (6.4%) and Black (4.1%). 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 Birch 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 Birch at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White84.0% · 326
- Two or more races6.4% · 25
- Black or African American4.1% · 16
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 13
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.1% · 8
Popularity
Birch: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Birch from the 1910s through to the 2020s, spanning 11 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 108 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Birch remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Birch 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 Birch 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 Birch
The name Birch originates from the Old English word "birce," which means the birch tree. This name has its roots in the Anglo-Saxon culture and is believed to have been used as early as the 7th century AD. It is a nature-inspired name, celebrating the graceful and resilient birch tree found in many parts of Europe.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Birch can be found in the Domesday Book, a manuscript record of landholdings and their owners in England, compiled in 1086 under the orders of William the Conqueror. The name appears as a surname in this historical document, suggesting its use as a given name may predate this record.
In the literary world, the name Birch has been immortalized in the works of renowned authors. One notable example is the character Betsy Trotwood, whose maiden name was Birch, in Charles Dickens' novel "David Copperfield," published in 1850. This character's strong-willed and independent nature may have been inspired by the resilience associated with the birch tree.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Birch. One such figure was Birch Browne (1605-1685), an English writer and translator who was best known for his translations of classical works from Latin and Greek into English. Another notable individual was Birch Coulie (1851-1936), a Canadian-born American soldier and rancher who fought in the American Civil War.
In the realm of science, Birch Tamworth (1891-1967) was a British botanist and plant breeder who made significant contributions to the study of plant genetics and the development of new crop varieties. His work had a profound impact on agricultural practices and food production.
Additionally, Birch Bayh (1928-2019) was an American politician and lawyer who served as a United States Senator from Indiana from 1963 to 1981. He was instrumental in drafting and passing significant legislation, including the 25th Amendment to the US Constitution, which established procedures for presidential succession and disability.
While the name Birch has its roots in nature and ancient cultures, it has transcended time and geography, leaving its mark on various fields throughout history. Its connection to resilience, strength, and independence has made it a distinctive and enduring choice for parents seeking a meaningful name for their child.
People
Birch + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Birch as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with B
Other first names starting with B with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Birch: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Birch?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 275 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Birch 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 1,246,379 US residents.
Is Birch a common name?
We classify Birch as "Very Rare". It ranks above 78.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 335 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Birch most popular?
The single biggest year for Birch was 2017, when 20 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Birch 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 Birch in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 388 people with the name Birch, or 0.13 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #24,718 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 Birch 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 Birch?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Birch leans strongly male. 346 people counted with this name were male (90.3%), compared with 37 female bearers (9.7%). 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 Birch?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Birch is White at 84.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (6.4%) and Black (4.1%). 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 Birch most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Birch in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.0% (326 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 Birch in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Birch a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Birch 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 Birch still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Birch 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 Birch 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 Birch?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.