Fun Facts About the Name Hiro
- 916 babies named Hiro: U.S. records list 916 babies given the name Hiro from 1880 through 2025. Even 5 girls received the name Hiro - about 1 girl for every 182 boys.
What Does the Name Hiro Mean?
Hiro is a Japanese given name, and like most Japanese names it is written with kanji, so its meaning depends on which character the writer chooses. The most common element read hiro is 広, "wide, broad," a sense that comes from the old Japanese adjective hiroshi. Other kanji read the same way carry slightly different meanings: 大 "large, great," 浩 "vast, abundant," 博 "broad, extensive," 弘 and 宏 "wide, expansive," and 寛 "generous, tolerant." The name's spoken form stays the same while its written meaning changes with the character.
The name is not related to the Japanese common noun 尋 (hiro), a traditional unit of length of about six shaku (roughly 1.8 meters). That word is a homophone only, and it is not usually used as a naming element. When Hiro is a short form of a longer name such as Hiroshi or Hiroko, its meaning follows the kanji of the full name rather than a character chosen for Hiro alone.
Hiro Name History & Origins
The element hiro belongs to the long Japanese practice of composing names from kanji chosen for both sound and sense. It appears in a great many compound given names, among them Hiroshi, Hiroko, Hiroyuki, Hiroto, and Hiromi, and it also appears in place and family names, such as Hiroshima (広島, "wide island"). The adjective behind the element, hiroshi, is old in the language, which is why 広 carries the core sense of width or breadth in these names.
Hiro also stands by itself as a one-kanji given name, and it is widely used as a shortened form of any longer name beginning with Hiro-. In that shortened use the name inherits whatever meaning the full name's characters give it. English-language audiences have encountered the name in fiction, including the character Hiro Protagonist in Neal Stephenson's novel Snow Crash (1992) and Hiro Hamada in the film Big Hero 6 (2014); these are uses of an existing Japanese name, not the source of it.
How Popular is the Name Hiro?
Hiro has historically been an exceptionally rare given name in the United States, remaining well outside the national mainstream. It saw its highest recorded annual births in 2016. Its best rank was #1,906 in 2016.
U.S. name popularity from 1880-2025, based on SSA data. Rank shows how the name compares with other names - lower numbers mean greater popularity. Births shows how many babies received the name each year.
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1915 | #4,574 | 5 | 0.0005% |
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #2,902 | 43 | 0.0025% |
| 2024 | #2,115 | 70 | 0.0041% |
| 2023 | #2,328 | 60 | 0.0035% |
| 2022 | #2,177 | 67 | 0.0038% |
| 2021 | #2,600 | 50 | 0.0029% |
| 2020 | #2,375 | 56 | 0.0032% |
| 2019 | #2,436 | 55 | 0.0031% |
| 2018 | #2,591 | 49 | 0.0027% |
| 2017 | #2,200 | 61 | 0.0033% |
| 2016 | #1,906 | 77 | 0.0041% |
| 2015 | #1,963 | 74 | 0.0039% |
| 2014 | #3,174 | 35 | 0.0018% |
| 2013 | #5,255 | 17 | 0.0009% |
| 2012 | #3,647 | 29 | 0.0015% |
| 2011 | #4,722 | 20 | 0.0011% |
| 2010 | #4,158 | 24 | 0.0013% |
| 2009 | #4,339 | 23 | 0.0012% |
| 2008 | #5,591 | 16 | 0.0008% |
| 2007 | #5,284 | 17 | 0.0008% |
| 2006 | #4,569 | 20 | 0.0010% |
| 2005 | #7,321 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 2004 | #7,767 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 2003 | #11,537 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2001 | #9,716 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1999 | #10,527 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1926 | #4,491 | 5 | 0.0005% |
| 1923 | #3,296 | 8 | 0.0007% |
Name popularity over more than a century, based on Social Security Administration data. Gaps in the chart indicate years when the name does not appear in the published records.
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How the Name Hiro Shapes Your Personality and Life?
You attract success and money. You are a lover of nature and do not need others for your happiness. You are self sufficient. You strive for material success and power and have business sense. You possess strong organizational abilities, can be a good manager, and executive by nature. You are capable of great achievement in business and finance. You are intuitive and might be interested in the arts, drama or science.
You are seeking freedom, opportunities to enjoy life: to make love, to go places and to do things. You are very adventurous and willing to take risk to achieve your objectives. New ways and new experiences can't satisfy your restless nature. One adventure leads you to another. You are honest and fair, because you know that this is the only way to receive justice and honesty from other people. But your personal growth is vital for you, and it is difficult to be tied down by rules and obligations. Your restless spirit might best controlled by choosing the field of work that meet your demand for action and adventure.
✦ Hiro's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Hiro's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.