Recorded 1896–2023 Boys' name Peak 1928 2,018 births

Heyward — boys' name

2,018 babies named Heyward in U.S. Social Security records since 1896, with the highest year being 1928. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.

1890s111900s451910s1961920s3431930s3301940s3161950s3011960s1951970s1091980s861990s352000s52010s322020s14
1920s
Peak decade

17% of everyone ever named Heyward was born in this single decade.

1928
Single peak year

43 babies were named Heyward in 1928 — its busiest year on record.

What the Data Says About Heyward

The Social Security Administration has registered 2,018 babies named Heyward between 1896 and 2023, spanning 128 consecutive years of U.S. birth records. As a boy's name, Heyward currently falls outside the top 1,000 boys' names for 2023. The name reached its historical peak in 1928, when 43 babies received it in a single year.

Decade-level aggregation shows that Heyward performed strongest in the 1920s, accumulating 343 births during that ten-year window. Across the 14 decades of recorded activity, Heyward shows a clear decline from its mid-century high. Geographically, the name is most concentrated in South Carolina, which accounts for 1,258 births — the largest state-level total in the dataset — followed by Georgia and New York. In total, SSA state-level files list Heyward in 3 of the 51 U.S. reporting jurisdictions.

No etymological entry is currently available for Heyward in our reference dataset. These figures derive from SSA's annual national and state-level name files, which include any name appearing at least five times in a given year or state-year; names below that threshold are suppressed for privacy and therefore excluded from the totals shown here. The 2,018 total represents a lower bound — actual usage may be higher in years or states where the count fell below the disclosure floor. This page is provided for informational and research purposes only and does not constitute personal, legal, or naming advice.

Heyward at a glance

Last recorded 2023

Total births

2,018

Since 1896

128 years of records

Peak year

1928

43 births that year

Strongest decade: 1920s

Current rank

Unranked

Outside the modern top-1,000

As of 2023

Active since

1896

Recorded for 128 years

Last year on file: 2023

Heyward popularity over time

Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 2023–1896

Last recorded 2023
Peak year (1928)
43
Annual births at peak — across 128 years of records
01020304050 202319891976196319501937192419111896 5

Heyward by decade

Total births in each ten-year window — peak vs trough at a glance

Peak: 1920s
Peak decade
1920s
343 births that decade — 17% of Heyward's all-time total
1890s111900s451910s1961920s3431930s3301940s3161950s3011960s1951970s1091980s861990s352000s52010s322020s14

Heyward by state

Where Heyward concentrates geographically — total births since 1896

Regionally concentrated
Top 3 states by recorded births for the name Heyward
Rank State Visual share Births Share of total
#1 South Carolina
1,258 62.3%
#2 Georgia
72 3.6%
#3 New York
13 0.6%
South Carolina share of Heyward's total US births 62.3%
Even split

1,258 of 2,018 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 3 reporting states.

Frequently Asked Questions

How popular is the name Heyward?
2,018 babies have been named Heyward since 1896. It was last recorded in 2023. The peak year was 1928 with 43 births.
When was Heyward most popular?
Heyward was most popular in the 1920s decade with 343 total births. The single peak year was 1928.
Where is Heyward most popular?
The top states for the name Heyward are South Carolina (1,258 births), Georgia (72 births), New York (13 births).
How long has the name Heyward been used?
Heyward has been recorded in Social Security data since 1896, spanning 128 years of data through 2023.
What names are similar to Heyward?
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Heywood, Heyden, Heyansh, Heydan, and 2 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for boys.

Data Sources

Data as of 2024. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).

Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications — National Data, 1896–2023 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames). National-level data includes all names with 5 or more occurrences in a given year.

State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names — State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip). Includes all names with 5 or more occurrences per state per year; rarer names are excluded for privacy.