Hiren
A masculine Hindu name meaning "diamond" or "brilliant".
Name Census estimates that about 119 living Americans carry the first name Hiren. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Hiren today is around 34 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Hiren births was 1988 (12 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Hiren. 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 Hiren with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
119
~ 1 in 2,880,289 Americans
Peak year
1988
12 babies that year
Average age
34
years old
2002 SSA rank
#11,329
Tracked since 1983
Census
Hiren in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 1,019 people with the first name Hiren, which placed it at #12,264 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
#12,264
National first-name rank
People counted
1.0K
1,019 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.3
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Asian and Pacific Islander
95.8% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hiren
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Hiren is Asian/Pacific Islander at 95.8%. The next largest groups are White (2.0%) and Black (0.8%). 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 Hiren 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 Hiren at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander95.8% · 976
- White2.0% · 20
- Black or African American0.8% · 8
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 6
- Two or more races0.5% · 5
- Hispanic or Latino0.4% · 4
Popularity
Hiren: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Hiren from the 1980s through to the 2000s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 54 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1990s peak, Hiren remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Hiren 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 Hiren during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Hirens live
Origin
Meaning and history of Hiren
The name Hiren originates from the Sanskrit language and has its roots in ancient Hindu culture and scriptures. It is derived from the Sanskrit word "Hira," which means "diamond" or "gem." The name was first recorded in Hindu scriptures and texts dating back to the 5th century BCE.
In ancient Hindu texts, the name Hiren was often associated with purity, radiance, and strength. It was believed that those who bore this name possessed qualities akin to a diamond – strong, resilient, and capable of reflecting light and brilliance.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Hiren was a Hindu sage who lived in the 3rd century BCE. He was renowned for his wisdom and teachings on spirituality and was known for his ability to illuminate the minds of his followers with his profound insights.
During the medieval period, the name Hiren gained popularity among Hindu rulers and noblemen. One prominent figure was Hiren Sagar, a 12th-century king who ruled over a region in present-day Gujarat, India. He was celebrated for his just and benevolent rule, as well as his patronage of the arts and literature.
In the 16th century, Hiren Viját was a renowned Hindu scholar and philosopher who made significant contributions to the study of Hindu scriptures and metaphysics. His works were widely read and studied across the Indian subcontinent.
Another notable figure in history was Hiren Mukherjee, a Bengali revolutionary and freedom fighter who played a pivotal role in India's struggle for independence from British rule in the early 20th century. He was born in 1888 and dedicated his life to the cause of Indian independence through non-violent means.
Hiren Nath was an Indian composer and musician of the 20th century, born in 1919. He is recognized for his contributions to the revival and preservation of classical Indian music, particularly the Hindustani and Carnatic traditions. His compositions and performances have left an indelible mark on the world of Indian classical music.
These are just a few examples of individuals throughout history who have borne the name Hiren, a name that has transcended time and cultures, carrying with it a rich legacy of wisdom, strength, and radiance.
People
Hiren + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Hiren 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
Hiren: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Hiren?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 119 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Hiren 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 2,880,289 US residents.
Is Hiren a common name?
We classify Hiren as "Very Rare". It ranks above 67.1% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 123 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Hiren most popular?
The single biggest year for Hiren was 1988, when 12 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Hiren is about 34 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Hiren in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 1,019 people with the name Hiren, or 0.34 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #12,264 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 Hiren 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 Hiren?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Hiren appears almost entirely male. Of the 1,019 people counted with this name, 99.6% 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 Hiren?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Hiren is Asian/Pacific Islander at 95.8%. The next largest groups are White (2.0%) and Black (0.8%). 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 Hiren most often in the Census?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest reported group for people named Hiren in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.8% (976 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 Hiren in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Hiren a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Hiren 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 Hiren still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Hiren 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 Hiren 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 Hiren?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.