Grigor
A masculine Armenian name derived from the Greek "Gregorios", meaning "watchful".
Name Census estimates that about 193 living Americans carry the first name Grigor. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Grigor today is around 23 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Grigor births was 1992 (14 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Grigor. 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
193
~ 1 in 1,775,929 Americans
Peak year
1992
14 babies that year
Average age
23
years old
2022 SSA rank
#8,540
Tracked since 1984
Census
Grigor in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 993 people with the first name Grigor, which placed it at #12,510 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
#12,510
National first-name rank
People counted
993
993 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.3
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
97.8% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Grigor
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Grigor is White at 97.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (1.2%) and Hispanic (0.5%). 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 Grigor 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 Grigor at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White97.8% · 971
- Two or more races1.2% · 12
- Hispanic or Latino0.5% · 5
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.3% · 3
- Black or African American0.2% · 2
Popularity
Grigor: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Grigor from the 1980s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 81 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1990s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Grigor 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 Grigor during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Grigors live
Origin
Meaning and history of Grigor
The given name Grigor has its origins in the Armenian language and culture, dating back to the early centuries of the Christian era. It is derived from the Armenian word "grigor," which means "vigilant" or "watchful." The name is a transliteration of the Greek name "Gregorios," which itself is rooted in the Greek word "gregorein," meaning "to watch" or "to be awake."
Grigor is a widely popular name among Armenians, and it has been used throughout the centuries. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the 4th century, when Grigor Lusavorich, also known as St. Gregory the Illuminator, was the pivotal figure in the conversion of Armenia to Christianity. His efforts led to the establishment of the Armenian Apostolic Church, and he is revered as a national hero and saint.
Another notable figure in Armenian history was Grigor Narekatsi, a 10th-century monk, poet, and philosopher. He is renowned for his literary masterpiece, the "Book of Lamentations," which is considered a pinnacle of Armenian literature and has been translated into numerous languages.
In the realm of religious leadership, Grigor VIII Pahlavuni, also known as Grigor of Cilicia, was a prominent figure in the 13th century. He served as the Catholicos (head) of the Armenian Apostolic Church from 1293 to 1307 and played a significant role in the church's administration during a tumultuous period.
Grigor Tatevatsi, born in 1346, was a renowned Armenian philosopher, theologian, and teacher. He is particularly known for his extensive commentaries on the works of Aristotle and his contributions to the development of Armenian philosophical thought.
In more recent times, Grigor Artsruni was an influential Armenian writer, historian, and public figure who lived from 1845 to 1892. He is celebrated for his historical novels, which explored the lives of prominent figures from Armenian history and helped preserve the cultural heritage of the Armenian people.
While the name Grigor has been predominantly used within the Armenian community, it has also been adopted in various forms by other cultures and languages. However, its origins and deep-rooted connections to Armenian history and culture remain an integral part of its legacy.
People
Grigor + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Grigor as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with G
Other first names starting with G with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Grigor: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Grigor?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 193 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Grigor 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 1,775,929 US residents.
Is Grigor a common name?
We classify Grigor as "Very Rare". It ranks above 73.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 197 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Grigor most popular?
The single biggest year for Grigor was 1992, when 14 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Grigor is about 23 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Grigor in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 993 people with the name Grigor, or 0.33 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #12,510 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 Grigor 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 Grigor?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Grigor appears almost entirely male. Of the 990 people counted with this name, 99.7% 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 Grigor?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Grigor is White at 97.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (1.2%) and Hispanic (0.5%). 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 Grigor most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Grigor in the 2020 Census, accounting for 97.8% (971 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 Grigor in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Grigor a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Grigor 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 Grigor still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Grigor 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 Grigor 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 have Grigor as a first name?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.