# Hector (first name)

Source: https://namelineage.com/first-name/hector/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. US counts from the Social Security Administration; England and Wales counts from the Office for National Statistics; meaning and etymology from Wiktionary. Data updated 2026-11-11.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Usually given to | boys |
| Origin | Greek |
| Meaning | “holding fast”, “to have”, “hold”, “to hold”, “to overpower” |
| Pronunciation | /ˈhɛktɚ/, 2 syllables |
| Nicknames | none recorded |
| Variant spellings | Hectour |
| US babies named this | 109,209 since 1880 |
| Boys / girls in the US | 108,728 / 481 (0% girls) |
| Babies in England and Wales | 3,412, 1996 to 2025 |

## Etymology

From Latin Hectōr or Ancient Greek Ἕκτωρ (Héktōr), from ἕκτωρ (héktōr, “holding fast”), from ἔχω (ékhō, “to have, hold”), from Proto-Indo-European *seǵʰ- (“to hold; to overpower”). Sometimes used as an anglicization of various Scottish Gaelic names, including Eachann and Eochaid. The thundercloud cluster was named by pilots during the Second World War.

## Popularity

The last 15 years of each series. A year is missing when too few babies were given the name for the agency to publish it: five in the US, three in England and Wales.

### United States, girls

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1986 | 18 | 4,418 |
| 1987 | 19 | 4,356 |
| 1988 | 18 | 4,714 |
| 1989 | 11 | 7,143 |
| 1990 | 12 | 7,030 |
| 1991 | 16 | 5,760 |
| 1992 | 13 | 6,793 |
| 1993 | 18 | 5,290 |
| 1994 | 18 | 5,325 |
| 1995 | 11 | 7,706 |
| 1996 | 12 | 7,297 |
| 1999 | 5 | 15,266 |
| 2001 | 5 | 16,251 |
| 2004 | 5 | 17,073 |
| 2008 | 7 | 14,384 |

### United States, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 1,414 | 248 |
| 2012 | 1,325 | 267 |
| 2013 | 1,257 | 277 |
| 2014 | 1,214 | 292 |
| 2015 | 1,194 | 303 |
| 2016 | 1,100 | 319 |
| 2017 | 1,074 | 318 |
| 2018 | 1,012 | 331 |
| 2019 | 985 | 341 |
| 2020 | 856 | 365 |
| 2021 | 901 | 361 |
| 2022 | 927 | 355 |
| 2023 | 831 | 385 |
| 2024 | 864 | 379 |
| 2025 | 779 | 409 |

### England and Wales, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 138 | 321 |
| 2012 | 149 | 307 |
| 2013 | 153 | 291 |
| 2014 | 171 | 276 |
| 2015 | 155 | 299 |
| 2016 | 206 | 255 |
| 2017 | 183 | 282 |
| 2018 | 197 | 259 |
| 2019 | 185 | 264 |
| 2020 | 175 | 269 |
| 2021 | 185 | 257 |
| 2022 | 150 | 301 |
| 2023 | 152 | 295 |
| 2024 | 145 | 308 |
| 2025 | 162 | 278 |

## In other languages

- Bulgarian: Хе́ктор
- French: Hector
- German: Hektor
- Greek: Έκτορας
- Italian: Ettore
- Polish: Hektor
- Portuguese: Heitor
- Russian: Ге́ктор
- Scottish Gaelic: Eachann
- Spanish: Héctor
- Swedish: Hektor

## People named Hector

- Hector Berlioz, French composer and conductor (1803–1869)
- Hector Malot, French writer (1830–1907)
- Héctor Cúper, Argentine footballer
- Hector Guimard, French architect (1867–1942)
- Héctor Elizondo, American actor
- Héctor Babenco, Brazilian-Argentine film director (1946-2016)
- Héctor Yazalde, Argentine footballer (1946-1997)
- Héctor Rial, Argentine footballer (1928–1991)
- Héctor Enrique, Argentine footballer (born 1962)
- Héctor Baley, Argentinian footballer
- Héctor Baldassi, Argentine football referee and politician
- Héctor Alterio, Argentine actor (1929–2025)

## How to read these numbers

A count is babies registered with that name in that year, not people alive now, so a name common a century ago can have a large total and few recent births.