Sotero
Masculine name of Spanish origin implying deliverance or savior.
Name Census estimates that about 518 living Americans carry the first name Sotero. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Sotero today is around 49 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Sotero births was 1947 (17 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Sotero. 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
518
~ 1 in 661,688 Americans
Peak year
1947
17 babies that year
Average age
49
years old
2019 SSA rank
#13,854
Tracked since 1912
Census
Sotero in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 1,439 people with the first name Sotero, which placed it at #9,586 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
#9,586
National first-name rank
People counted
1.4K
1,439 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.5
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Hispanic or Latino
90.2% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Sotero
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Sotero is Hispanic at 90.2%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (6.6%) and White (2.1%). 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 Sotero 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 Sotero at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino90.2% · 1,298
- Asian and Pacific Islander6.6% · 95
- White2.1% · 30
- Two or more races0.7% · 10
- Black or African American0.4% · 6
Popularity
Sotero: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Sotero from the 1910s through to the 2010s, spanning 11 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 103 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1920s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Sotero 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 Sotero during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Soteros live
Origin
Meaning and history of Sotero
The name Sotero has its origins in the Greek language and culture, dating back to ancient times. It is derived from the Greek word "soter," which means "savior" or "deliverer." This name was initially associated with deities or heroes who were believed to have saved or delivered people from various forms of peril or hardship.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Sotero can be found in ancient Greek mythology. In the myth of the Trojan War, there was a character named Sotero, who was a companion of the hero Odysseus. According to the legend, Sotero played a crucial role in helping Odysseus escape from the island of the Cyclops, ultimately contributing to his safe return home after the war.
In the Christian tradition, the name Sotero has been associated with the concept of salvation and deliverance from sin. The name gained popularity among early Christian communities, particularly in regions where Greek was widely spoken, such as the Eastern Mediterranean and parts of the Middle East.
One of the earliest known individuals to bear the name Sotero was Saint Sotero, who served as the Pope of the Catholic Church from around 166 to 175 AD. He is remembered for his efforts in combating various heresies and maintaining the unity of the early Christian Church.
Another notable figure with the name Sotero was Sotero Feliu García (1843-1909), a Spanish Catholic priest and missionary who dedicated his life to serving the indigenous communities in the Philippines. He is recognized for his efforts in promoting education and social welfare among the marginalized populations of the archipelago.
In the artistic realm, Sotero Fernández (1874-1948) was a renowned Mexican painter and sculptor who contributed significantly to the development of the Mexican muralist movement. His works often depicted scenes from Mexican history and culture, reflecting the country's rich heritage.
Sotero Prieto y Prieto (1884-1935) was a Cuban writer, journalist, and politician who played a prominent role in the literary and political circles of his time. He served as the Minister of Public Instruction in Cuba and contributed to the promotion of education and cultural initiatives in the country.
It is worth noting that while the name Sotero has been used across various cultures and time periods, its origins can be traced back to the Greek language and its association with the concept of salvation or deliverance. The name has carried this symbolic meaning throughout its history, often being bestowed upon individuals who were perceived as saviours, deliverers, or influential figures in their respective fields.
People
Sotero + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Sotero as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with S
Other first names starting with S with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Sotero: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Sotero?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 518 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Sotero 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 661,688 US residents.
Is Sotero a common name?
We classify Sotero as "Very Rare". It ranks above 84.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 786 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Sotero most popular?
The single biggest year for Sotero was 1947, when 17 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Sotero is about 49 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Sotero in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 1,439 people with the name Sotero, or 0.48 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #9,586 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 Sotero 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 Sotero?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Sotero appears almost entirely male. Of the 1,445 people counted with this name, 99.4% 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 Sotero?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Sotero is Hispanic at 90.2%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (6.6%) and White (2.1%). 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 Sotero most often in the Census?
Hispanic is the largest reported group for people named Sotero in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.2% (1,298 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 Sotero in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Sotero a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Sotero 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 Sotero still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Sotero 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 Sotero 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 Americans are named Sotero?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.