Zvi
A masculine Hebrew name meaning "deer" or "gazelle".
Name Census estimates that about 623 living Americans carry the first name Zvi. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Zvi today is around 35 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Zvi births was 1977 (16 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Zvi. 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 Zvi with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
623
~ 1 in 550,167 Americans
Peak year
1977
16 babies that year
Average age
35
years old
2024 SSA rank
#8,286
Tracked since 1951
Census
Zvi in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 876 people with the first name Zvi, which placed it at #13,689 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
#13,689
National first-name rank
People counted
876
876 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.3
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
95.5% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Zvi
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Zvi is White at 95.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.1%) and Black (1.0%). 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 Zvi 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 Zvi at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White95.5% · 837
- Hispanic or Latino2.1% · 18
- Black or African American1.0% · 9
- Two or more races0.8% · 7
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 4
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 1
Popularity
Zvi: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Zvi from the 1950s through to the 2020s, spanning 8 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 112 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Zvi remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Zvi 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 Zvi during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Zvis live
Origin
Meaning and history of Zvi
The name Zvi is a Hebrew name that originated in ancient times. It is derived from the Hebrew word "tzvi," which means "deer" or "gazelle." The name's origins can be traced back to the biblical era, as it appears in various passages of the Hebrew Bible.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Zvi can be found in the Book of Psalms, where it is mentioned as a descriptor for the grace and beauty of the deer. This association with the deer likely stems from the animal's symbolic significance in ancient Israelite culture, representing swiftness, agility, and grace.
Throughout the centuries, the name Zvi has been borne by various notable figures in Jewish history and literature. One of the earliest known individuals with this name was Zvi Hirsch ben Hayyim, a prominent Rabbi and scholar who lived in the 17th century (1630-1718). He was known for his influential works on Jewish law and ethics.
Another prominent bearer of the name was Zvi Hirsch Kalischer, a 19th-century Rabbi and pioneer of the Zionist movement (1795-1874). He was instrumental in advocating for the establishment of a Jewish homeland in the land of Israel and is considered one of the forerunners of modern Zionism.
In the realm of literature, Zvi Nussbaum (1908-1988) was a renowned Israeli writer and playwright. His works, which often explored themes of identity and the human condition, earned him critical acclaim and numerous literary awards.
The name Zvi has also been carried by notable figures in the world of science and academia. Zvi Ringer (1910-2003) was an Israeli physicist and educator who made significant contributions to the field of solid-state physics. He was also a recipient of the prestigious Israel Prize for his contributions to science and education.
In more recent times, Zvi Griliches (1930-1999) was an influential American economist known for his pioneering work in the field of econometrics and the measurement of productivity. His research on the sources of economic growth and the role of human capital had a profound impact on the field of economics.
These are just a few examples of the many individuals throughout history who have borne the name Zvi, each leaving their mark in various fields and disciplines. The name's enduring legacy reflects its deep roots in ancient Hebrew culture and its symbolic association with grace, beauty, and swiftness.
People
Zvi + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Zvi as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with Z
Other first names starting with Z with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Zvi: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Zvi?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 623 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Zvi 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 550,167 US residents.
Is Zvi a common name?
We classify Zvi as "Very Rare". It ranks above 86.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 665 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Zvi most popular?
The single biggest year for Zvi was 1977, when 16 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Zvi is about 35 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Zvi in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 876 people with the name Zvi, or 0.29 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #13,689 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 Zvi 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 Zvi?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Zvi appears almost entirely male. Of the 880 people counted with this name, 99.1% 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 Zvi?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Zvi is White at 95.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.1%) and Black (1.0%). 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 Zvi most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Zvi in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.5% (837 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 Zvi in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Zvi a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Zvi 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 Zvi still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Zvi 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 Zvi 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 Zvi?
Find out how many Americans are named Zvi on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.