How Many People Are Named Cynthia?
An estimated 542,980 people in the United States have the first name Cynthia. While not in the top 50, it remains a well-known name ranking #76 overall. It is almost exclusively a female name. The average bearer is 60 years old, and Cynthia peaked in popularity in 1957 with 39,416 births that year. It has a similar number of bearers to Nathan (541,143).
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Cynthia as a first name in the United States, including gender data, a year-by-year popularity timeline going back to 1880, a decade breakdown, and state-by-state birth registrations. You can also check how many people share the full name Cynthia paired with any surname.
Key Insights
- While Cynthia is overwhelmingly female, 1,960 male births have been registered with this name since 1880.
- Cynthia has fallen dramatically from its peak in the 1950s. Recent registrations are less than 5% of what they were at the name's height.
Estimated Living Americans
542,980
About 1 in 631 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Very Common
Predicted Gender
Female
99.7% confidence
Average Age
60
years old
Peak Year
1957
39,416 births
Total Registered
713,161
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Cynthia
Cynthia is almost exclusively a female name. Out of 713,161 total births registered, 99.7% were female.
Cynthia as a male name
Ranked #11,224 in 2003
5 male births in 2003
Peak: 1957 (76 births)
Cynthia as a female name
Ranked #826 in 2024
331 female births in 2024
Peak: 1957 (39,340 births)
Cynthia: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Cynthia span from the 1880s to the 2020s, covering 15 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 1950s, when 263,890 babies were registered. Cynthia has declined significantly from its peak in the 1950s. Recent registrations are a fraction of what they were at the name's height.
Cynthia by Decade
How has Cynthia tracked across different eras? The table below groups all SSA birth registrations into 10-year periods, with separate male and female counts. The colored bar shows each decade's share relative to the peak.
| Decade | Total | Male | Female | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1880s | 582 | 0 | 582 | |
| 1890s | 701 | 0 | 701 | |
| 1900s | 694 | 0 | 694 | |
| 1910s | 1,911 | 0 | 1,911 | |
| 1920s | 3,661 | 0 | 3,661 | |
| 1930s | 9,695 | 29 | 9,666 | |
| 1940s | 58,206 | 146 | 58,060 | |
| 1950s | 263,890 | 461 | 263,429 | |
| 1960s | 197,149 | 553 | 196,596 | |
| 1970s | 80,533 | 333 | 80,200 | |
| 1980s | 41,936 | 269 | 41,667 | |
| 1990s | 31,470 | 158 | 31,312 | |
| 2000s | 15,181 | 11 | 15,170 | |
| 2010s | 5,945 | 0 | 5,945 | |
| 2020s | 1,607 | 0 | 1,607 | |
Cynthia by State
Birth registrations for Cynthia span all 51 states and territories in the SSA database. The highest counts are in California, Texas, New York. The lowest are in Wyoming, Alaska, Vermont. On average, about 13,871 Cynthias were registered per state.
Cynthia + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Cynthia as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Cynthia
Other first names starting with C with a similar number of bearers.
Cynthia: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Cynthia?
We estimate approximately 542,980 people named Cynthia are alive in the United States today. This is based on SSA birth records from 1880 to 2024, adjusted for mortality using CDC life tables. About 1 in 631 Americans share this first name.
Is Cynthia a common name?
Cynthia is classified as "Very Common" and is more popular than 99.9% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 713,161 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Cynthia most popular?
Cynthia reached peak popularity in 1957, when 39,416 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Cynthia is approximately 60 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Cynthia a female name?
Cynthia is predominantly female. 99.7% of people with this name are female. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Cynthia Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Cynthia Smith, Cynthia Johnson, Cynthia Williams. You can also search any combination on our homepage.
Where does this data come from?
Our estimates use Social Security Administration birth records (1880 to 2024), adjusted for survival using CDC 2023 life tables broken down by sex. The U.S. population figure (342,754,338) is from the Census Bureau's July 2025 estimate. Full methodology.
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