Cristobal
A masculine Spanish name derived from Christopher, bearer of Christ.
Name Census estimates that about 7,206 living Americans carry the first name Cristobal. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Cristobal today is around 29 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Cristobal births was 2001 (249 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Cristobal. 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 Cristobal with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
7.2K
~ 1 in 47,565 Americans
Peak year
2001
249 babies that year
Average age
29
years old
2024 SSA rank
#1,480
Tracked since 1908
Census
Cristobal in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 11,332 people with the first name Cristobal, which placed it at #2,283 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
#2,283
National first-name rank
People counted
11K
11,332 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
3.8
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Hispanic or Latino
97.0% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Cristobal
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Cristobal is Hispanic at 97.0%. The next largest groups are White (1.5%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.9%). 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 Cristobal 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 Cristobal at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino97.0% · 10,989
- White1.5% · 170
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 100
- Black or African American0.4% · 42
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 17
- Two or more races0.1% · 14
Gender
Gender distribution for Cristobal
Out of the 7,896 babies given the name Cristobal since 1880, 99.9% were registered as male. The name sits firmly on the male side of the spectrum, with only a handful of female registrations across the entire dataset.
Cristobal as a male name
- Ranked #1,480 in 2024
- 122 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2001 (249 births)
Cristobal as a female name
- Ranked #9,800 in 1986
- 6 female births in 1986
- Peak: 1986 (6 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Cristobal appears almost entirely male. Of the 11,329 people counted with this name, 99.5% were male and only a very small share were female.
Popularity
Cristobal: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Cristobal from the 1900s through to the 2020s, spanning 13 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 1,858 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2000s peak, Cristobal remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Cristobal 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 Cristobal during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Cristobals live
The SSA's state-level files cover 18 states and territories. Texas, California, Florida recorded the most babies named Cristobal, while Virginia, Oklahoma, New Jersey recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 322 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Cristobal
The given name Cristobal is of Spanish origin, derived from the Greek name Khristophoros, which means "Christ-bearer" or "bearer of Christ." This name has its roots in the Christian tradition and was initially used to honor Saint Christopher, who was a martyr and a legendary figure in Christian mythology.
In the early days of Christianity, the name Cristobal gained popularity among the faithful who revered Saint Christopher as the patron saint of travelers and protector against sudden death. The name was widely used in Spain, Portugal, and other regions influenced by the Spanish and Portuguese empires.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Cristobal can be traced back to the 15th century, when Cristobal Colon, better known as Christopher Columbus, the famous Italian explorer, set sail under the sponsorship of the Spanish monarchs Ferdinand and Isabella. Cristobal Columbus' voyage in 1492 led to the European discovery of the Americas, forever changing the course of human history.
Another notable figure in history who bore the name Cristobal was Cristobal de Morales, a Spanish composer and one of the most influential figures in Renaissance music. He lived from around 1500 to 1553 and served as the maestro di capilla (chapel master) at the Aragonese Royal Chapel in Spain.
In the 16th century, Cristobal de Acuña was a Spanish Jesuit missionary and explorer who led an expedition along the Amazon River in South America. His account of the journey, published in 1641, provided valuable insights into the region's geography and indigenous cultures.
During the 17th century, Cristobal Balenciaga Mazarrasa, a Spanish Renaissance painter, was known for his religious works and portraits. He lived from around 1610 to 1670 and worked primarily in the city of Seville.
In more recent times, Cristobal Balenciaga, the renowned Spanish fashion designer, was born in 1895 and is credited with shaping the modern understanding of elegance and style. He founded the iconic Balenciaga fashion house and greatly influenced the industry with his innovative designs and techniques.
While this history primarily focuses on the given name Cristobal, it is worth noting that the name has also been used as a surname, particularly in Spanish-speaking regions. However, this detailed report does not delve into its usage as a last name or surname.
People
Cristobal + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Cristobal as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with C
Other first names starting with C with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Cristobal: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Cristobal?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 7,206 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Cristobal 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 47,565 US residents.
Is Cristobal a common name?
We classify Cristobal as "Rare". It ranks above 97.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 7,896 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Cristobal most popular?
The single biggest year for Cristobal was 2001, when 249 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Cristobal is about 29 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Cristobal in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 11,332 people with the name Cristobal, or 3.75 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #2,283 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 Cristobal 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 Cristobal?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Cristobal appears almost entirely male. Of the 11,329 people counted with this name, 99.5% 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 Cristobal?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Cristobal is Hispanic at 97.0%. The next largest groups are White (1.5%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.9%). 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 Cristobal most often in the Census?
Hispanic is the largest reported group for people named Cristobal in the 2020 Census, accounting for 97.0% (10,989 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 Cristobal in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Cristobal a male name?
Yes, 99.9% of people registered as Cristobal 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 Cristobal still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Cristobal 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 Cristobal 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 share the name Cristobal?
For a quick modern take, check how many people share the name Cristobal on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.