Home › Baby Names Directory › Heyward
Heyward
How to Pronounce Heyward
Pronounced HAY-werd /ˈheɪ.wɚd/Medium
Meaning: Heyward is an English occupational surname from the medieval office of the hayward, from Old English hēg, 'hay or hedged enclosure', plus weard, 'guardian, warden' — the parish officer who kept fences and cattle out of the crops; the surname later served as a given name.Medium
Popularity in the U.S. · SSA data
U.S. births per year (Social Security Administration, 1880–present). Pink marker = peak year.
SSA data updated May 2026. How we source & verify this data.
History & Origin
Heyward comes from an English occupational surname built on Old English hēg, a hedged enclosure, and weard, a guardian — the hayward was the officer who kept livestock out of the growing crops. Families passed the surname down as a first name.
It carries a Southern, gentry ring in the United States, helped by the Charleston writer DuBose Heyward; even so it stayed rare, and it remains a distinctive, old-line choice rather than a revived favorite.
Variations
Nicknames
Famous Bearers
- ★DuBose Heyward (1885–1940)American author of the novel Porgy, the basis for the opera Porgy and Bess.
If you like Heyward…
Explore names like Heyward
Frequently Asked
What does the name Heyward mean?
Heyward is an English occupational surname meaning 'the hayward', the officer who guarded a village's hedged enclosures.
How do you pronounce Heyward?
It's said HAY-werd /ˈheɪ.wɚd/ — two syllables, stress on the first.
Is Heyward a boy or girl name?
Heyward is used as a boy's name.
How popular is Heyward?
Heyward has always been rare in the U.S., an old-line surname-name that is very uncommon today.