Heylin
A feminine name of unknown origin, possibly a variant of Helen.
Name Census estimates that about 95 living Americans carry the first name Heylin. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Heylin today is around 8 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Heylin births was 2023 (12 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Heylin. 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.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Heylin. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
95
~ 1 in 3,607,940 Americans
Peak year
2023
12 babies that year
Average age
8
years old
2024 SSA rank
#9,133
Tracked since 2007
Popularity
Heylin: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Heylin from the 2000s through to the 2020s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2020s, with 47 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Heylin 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 Heylin 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 Heylin
The given name Heylin is of English origin, derived from the Old English words "heg" meaning "hay" and "lind" meaning "linden tree". This suggests the name may have originally referred to someone who lived near a linden tree or a hayfield.
In the Middle Ages, the name appeared in various spellings such as Hailind, Heylynd, and Heylind in English parish records and census rolls. It was primarily used as a surname in areas like Lincolnshire and Yorkshire, but over time it also became adopted as a masculine given name.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Heylin was John Heylin, an English historian and polemical writer who lived from 1599 to 1662. He is known for his works like "Ecclesia Restaurata" and "Cosmography", which defended the Anglican church against Puritan and Roman Catholic criticisms.
Another notable bearer of the name was Peter Heylin, an English clergyman and author who lived from 1600 to 1662. He served as a chaplain to King Charles I and wrote several religious and historical works, including "Cyprianus Anglicus" and "A Help to English History".
In the 18th century, there was Sir Benjamin Heylin, a British naval officer and explorer who lived from 1670 to 1749. He is credited with leading expeditions to the Caribbean and the Pacific, as well as contributing to the mapping of the coast of Chile.
In the realm of literature, Rowland Heylin was an English poet and playwright who lived from 1629 to 1693. He is best known for his plays "The Bride" and "The Fair Captive", which were popular in the Restoration era.
Another significant figure was Edward Heylin, an English architect and surveyor who lived from 1634 to 1701. He was responsible for designing several notable buildings in London, including the Church of St Mary-le-Strand and the Royal College of Physicians.
People
Heylin + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Heylin as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with H
Other first names starting with H with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Heylin: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Heylin?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 95 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Heylin 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 3,607,940 US residents.
Is Heylin a common name?
We classify Heylin as "Very Rare". It ranks above 63.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 96 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Heylin most popular?
The single biggest year for Heylin was 2023, when 12 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Heylin is about 8 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
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 Heylin in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Heylin a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Heylin in the SSA data are female. 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 Heylin still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Heylin 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 Heylin 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.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many Americans are named Heylin?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans are named Heylin at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.