Heinz
Masculine · “home ruler”
Heinz is the standard German short form of a long Germanic name, brought to America by immigrants and registered here as a name in its own right. It is also on a great many bottles, carrying a number that was invented rather than counted.
How old is the name Heinz?
Heinz first appears in US birth records in 1915 — 110 years ago. The typical Heinz alive today was born around 1958, making them about 67 years old. About 400 people named Heinz are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Heinz most popular?
Heinz peaked in 1928, reaching #1228 nationally. See the whole 1928 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From Heinrich to Heinz
The story of Heinz
Fifty-seven was never the number of products. H. J. Heinz, a Pittsburgh food manufacturer, is said to have been riding an elevated train in New York when he saw a shoe advertisement boasting of twenty-one styles, liked the way a specific number worked, and settled on fifty-seven because he thought the five and the seven looked and sounded right — his own account says the company already sold more than sixty lines at the time. The slogan went onto every label and stayed for over a century, long after the count was absurd. It is one of the purest examples of a number used as a decoration rather than as information, and generations of people have assumed it was an inventory.
Meaning
home ruler
It shortens the German form of a name joining two elements, one meaning a home or estate and one meaning a ruler. German makes short forms by cutting the front and adding a consonant, which is how this shape arises.
How the name formed
- Heinrich
- Heinz
Related forms: Heinz · Henry
Pronouncing Heinz
HYNTS
One syllable. The ei says the long i of English, and the z is a ts sound, which is the part American speakers drop.
Nicknames for Heinz
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1915
- Most boys named
- 192834 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1228reached in 1928
- Change vs 2013
- 0.0%5 in 2021, from 5
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Heinz in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Heinz in German — same name
- Henry in English — related form
Heinzs among us
people named Heinz are estimated to be alive in the US today
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
Questions parents actually ask
Fashion outlook
Heinz sits outside the current charts, and that is its own kind of answer: naming cycles can only date the names they carried up. A name this rare has no decade stamped on it — it cannot go out of fashion, because it was never in.
Based on 146 years of naming cycles. How we read them
The trade-off
- One syllable is quick, clear and hard to mishear across a room.
- It is a genuine German name rather than an invented spelling.
- The longer name stands behind it for occasions that want one.
- It is a very well known brand, which readers will mention every time.
- The z is usually said as a plain z in America, which is not the German sound.
- Hines and Hinz will both be written for it.
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What they receive
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Heinz
Masculine
Frequently asked
- How many Heinzs are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 400 people named Heinz are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Heinz in 2025?
- Heinz is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 boy names.
- Will my child share the name Heinz with classmates?
- Heinz will almost certainly be the only one in school.
More H names
The most-given names starting with H, all years combined.
Henry#5 · Harold#991 · Harry#775 · Howard#1002 · Hunter#130 · Herbert#2641 · Herman#2363 · Harvey#251
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Heinz? See the current top 100.
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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