Boy · #9,692 in 2026

Helmer

Name: Popularity of the name Helmer in U.S. births, 1880–2026
Creator: U.S. Social Security Administration
License: https://www.ssa.gov/foia/
Keywords: Helmer, baby name, popularity, U.S., SSA, rankings

Helmer is both a masculine given name and a surname. In the former use it is common in Scandinavia. It is a German compound word: heil "healthy, well" and mer "famous" or helm "helmet" and her "warrior."

Swedish
Danish
Norwegian

Current Rank

#9,692

Peak Rank

#1,092 (1917)

Total Babies

835

5-Yr Trend

Stable

1884

First Year

2017

Last Year

1917

Peak Year

#1092

Peak Rank

835

Total Count

Years Active

Meaning & Origin of Helmer

What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.

Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →

Cultural Origins (via Behind the Name)

Swedish
Danish
Norwegian

The Story of Helmer

American parents first put Helmer on the record books as a baby boy name in 1884, with 6 registered babies. Its peak popularity came in 1917, when 37 Helmers were born — ranking #1,092 that year. About 30% of every Helmer on record arrived during the 1910s, its defining decade. Helmer last appeared in the published SSA data in 2017, with 7 recorded births — it has not charted nationally since. All told, over 835 Americans have carried the name since 1880, from the 1880s to the 2020s.

Popularity Over Time

Popularity by State

Top 10

11-50

51-100

101-500

500+

No data

Names that sound like Helmer

Phonetically similar names — useful when Helmer is the vibe but a different syllable count or letter feel might suit better. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.

Holmer
Helm
Heller
Helms
Helme
Hemmer
Hellyer
Helma
Helmi
Hellier
Helmers
Helmes

Source: Datamuse . Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated.

Frequently Asked Questions about Helmer

What does the name Helmer mean?

What is the origin of the name Helmer?

Helmer has roots in the following cultural and linguistic traditions: Swedish, Danish, Norwegian.

How popular is Helmer in 2026?

In 2026, Helmer ranks #9,692 among boys' names in the U.S., with 7 babies given the name that year.

When was Helmer most popular?

Helmer reached its peak popularity in 1917, ranking #1,092 that year with 37 babies given the name.

In which U.S. states is Helmer most popular?

Helmer has historically been most popular in North Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin. Rankings vary year to year, but these states show the strongest concentration of births named Helmer.

Is Helmer a unisex name?

In U.S. Social Security records, Helmer is primarily a boy's name. We don't have meaningful data for it as a girl's name.

What names go well with Helmer?

Names that share a similar style or popularity range with Helmer include Ignazio, Joffre, Lori. These pairings are based on rank proximity and naming era in U.S. data.

About the name Helmer

Helmer is a boy baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1884 and has accumulated 835 births in the dataset. Helmer's peak popularity came in 1917 when it ranked #1,092. Use the chart and map above to compare Helmer's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.

Continue exploring

Data sources

Birth statistics (counts, ranks, years 1880–2026) — U.S. Social Security Administration . Predictions for years not yet released by SSA are computed by Peek a Name from historical trends; we update with official data as soon as it ships.
Etymology, cultural origins, and related forms — Behind the Name (used under their public API terms).
Meaning prose and editorial summary — Wikipedia article extracts, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 .
Predicted nationality distribution — Nationalize.io .
Phonetically similar names — Datamuse .

Peek a Name aggregates and presents the above data for informational purposes. Statistical predictions and external attributions are clearly labelled where shown; we make no guarantee of accuracy beyond what each source provides.