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Hiawatha

UnisexBoys' nameGirls' name

Meaning uncertain in the cited reference

Hiawatha has been given to 1,228 babies in the U.S. since 1911. It was used fewer than 5 times in 2025, so it doesn't appear in the latest year's list — today it's a genuinely uncommon pick. Its peak year was 1934, with 26 recorded. It's used for both sexes: 75% boys, 25% girls all-time.

Babies named Hiawatha, 2004

1 in 764,000

Hiawatha over time, 1880–2025

BoysGirls
010203018801900192019401960198020002020

Based on births in the U.S. Babies given the name each year. Hover the chart — or focus it and use the arrow keys — for any year. Gaps mean the name was given fewer than 5 times that year; these counts are unpublished.

Girls or boys — Hiawatha over time

In 2004, Hiawatha went to 0% girls and 100% boys.

19112004

A sex is only published in years it reached five applications, so a stretch at 0% or 100% means the other side stayed under that floor — not that it was never used.

Hiawatha: meaning, origin, and history

Meaning uncertain in the cited reference

Deeper origin not confirmed in the cited records

What Hiawatha means

Hiawatha is a given name.

Documented naming usage and pronunciation

Hiawatha is used in History and Iroquois (Anglicized).

Another recorded pronunciation is /ˌhaɪ.ə.ˈwɑθ.ə/ for Hiawatha.

American usage and historical context

In the United States, 925 boys were recorded with the name Hiawatha between 1911 and 2004. Its highest annual count was 26 in 1934; its best national rank was #1,339 in 1934.

In the United States, 303 girls were recorded with the name Hiawatha between 1912 and 1977. Its highest annual count was 11 in 1926; its best national rank was #2,656 in 1913.

Sources & methodologyReferences, data & attribution

Meaning, origin, and language notes draw on the references below.

American popularity figures use published Social Security Administration records for this exact spelling. Counts below five for a name, sex, and year are omitted.

How common is Hiawatha?

Hiawatha had fewer than 5 recorded uses in 2025, so these figures use 2004, the last year it was published.

Among all babies, 2004
1 in 764,000
5 of 3,820,181 births
Among boys only
1 in 397,000
<0.01% of boys
Rank, 2004
Unranked
Fewer than 5 uses
Coin-flip room size
529,591 kids
Even odds of a second one

Where Hiawatha sits on the popularity scale

Rarest published (5 a year)#1 — Liam (20,818)

Chance at least one other child shares the name

If the other children were drawn at random from the 2004 national name distribution. Real classrooms cluster by region and community, so treat these as a floor, not a ceiling.

Class of 20Under 1%
Class of 30Under 1%
Grade of 100Under 1%
School of 500Under 1%

Put another way: gather 529,591 children born in 2004 and it's an even bet that one of them is another Hiawatha. In a class of 30 the chance is Under 1%.

When Hiawathas were born

Half of everyone ever recorded as Hiawatha was born before 1942 — so the typical Hiawatha is around 83 today.

Median birth year
1942
About 83 years old
Biggest decade
1920s
17.4% of all use
Born in the last 25 years
5.5%
Mostly a past generation
Recorded since 1950
357
People you could plausibly meet
Choose a decade

1920s — 17.4% of all recorded uses (161).

Is Hiawatha rising or falling?

Rank movement and count movement can disagree — the number of distinct names in use keeps growing, so a name holding a steady count still slides down the list. Both are shown.

Rank vs 1 year ago
—
Not ranked then
Rank vs 5 years ago
New entry
Not ranked then
Rank vs 10 years ago
—
Not ranked then
Births vs 10 years ago
—
Not published both years
Share of its own peak
0%
Peak was 1934 (26)
Years since peak
91
Years
Year-to-year steadiness
Volatile
32.4% average annual change
Best rank ever
#1,339
1934

Where Hiawatha is used — boys

Across 1910–2025, Hiawatha was most concentrated in Alabama — about 1 in — boys, against 1 in 664,848 across all states with data. It was least common in Virginia (1 in —).

00 per 100,000

Most concentrated

  1. 1Alabama1 in —
  2. 2North Carolina1 in —
  3. 3Texas1 in —
  4. 4Virginia1 in —

Shading is the share of that state's recorded boys given this name, not the raw count — otherwise the map would just show which states are biggest. Unshaded states have no published records for this period. U.S. birth records suppress state-year counts below 5; state counts therefore don't add up to the national total. Every state links to its full rankings. Hiawatha has too little recent state data to map, so this covers all years from 1910.

Where Hiawatha is used — girls

Across 1910–2025, Hiawatha was most concentrated in North Carolina — about 1 in — girls, against 1 in 931,388 across all states with data.

00 per 100,000

Most concentrated

  1. 1North Carolina1 in —

Shading is the share of that state's recorded girls given this name, not the raw count — otherwise the map would just show which states are biggest. Unshaded states have no published records for this period. U.S. birth records suppress state-year counts below 5; state counts therefore don't add up to the national total. Every state links to its full rankings. Hiawatha has too little recent state data to map, so this covers all years from 1910.

Hiawatha by the numbers

The raw record for each sex the name is used for.

As a boy's name

Rank in 2025
Unranked
Trend vs 5 yrs ago
—
Best rank ever
#1,339
1934
Peak year
1934
26 that year
First recorded
1911
Last recorded
2004
All-time count
925
Count in 2025
Under 5

As a girl's name

Rank in 2025
Unranked
Trend vs 5 yrs ago
—
Best rank ever
#2,656
1913
Peak year
1926
11 that year
First recorded
1912
Last recorded
1977
All-time count
303
Count in 2025
Under 5

Names similar to Hiawatha

Matched on shared beginnings and endings, similar length, and comparable popularity.

SamanthaSiddharthaCleothaBerthaJonathaMarthaTabithaJepthaJohnathaLeothaHianChanthaHiattArthaEarthaOthaParthaRathaAthaNathaOrenthaLethaSidharthaBawitha

Sibling names for Hiawatha

Names from the same era and popularity tier — the two things that make a sibling set feel deliberate — skipping lookalike spellings and shared initials.

Explore around Hiawatha

Top names of 1934, Hiawatha's peak yearThe 1930s in fullOther names that peaked in 1934Boys' names starting with H