Heather is an English primarily feminine given name. The botanical name refers to a variety of small shrubs with pink or white flowers which commonly grow in rocky areas. The brush is native to Scotland and England, but it is more commonly found in Scotland due to its rocky territories. The name is derived from Middle English hather. The spelling was altered in the 18th century due to associations with the English word heath, denoting a location where the plant heather often grows.

Heath is often regarded as a masculine form of the name. Heath has also occasionally been used as a girl's name in the United States.

Heather is also a surname.

Usage Heather has been in use as a name for girls throughout the Anglosphere since the 1800s, though it was most common in the United Kingdom and in British Commonwealth countries in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Newspapers.com records the use of "Miss Heather" in reference to a girl's name as early as 2 August 1852, in The New York Times. An infant by the name of Miss Heather Campbell arrived on a ship from Glasgow in New York, with her mother.

The name first appeared among the top 1,000 names for American girls in 1935. It was among the top 100 names for American girls from 1967 to 1998 and a top 10 name from 1972 to 1987. The name remained among the top 1,000 names for American girls until 2016 but has since declined in popularity. Heather was also among the top 1,000 names for American boys between 1974 and 1977.

Heather was among the top 100 names for girls in England and Wales from the 1930s to the early 1990s. It has since declined in use but remained among the top 1,000 names for girls through 2023.https://www.britishbabynames.com/blog/links-to-name-data.htmlhttps://www.behindthename.com/name/heather/top/england-wales It has been a similarly popular name for girls in Australia, Canada, Ireland, and New Zealand.https://www.behindthename.com/name/heather

Popular culture has affected usage of the name. The name steadily increased in use through the 1950s and 1960s but spiked in popularity after the Walt Disney Company television movie Guns in the Heather aired in the United States in 1969. The 1989 American teen black comedy film Heathers, featuring three evil characters named Heather, likely contributed to a decline in use of the name. The name was out of step with current fashions by 2018.

Women A–C

Heather Agyepong, British photographer, visual artist, performer and actress Heather Ahtone, American and Chickasaw academic and museum curator Heather Albert (born 1968), American professional bicycle racer Heather Aldama (born 1978), American soccer player Heather Altman, American real estate agent and reality television presenter Heather Anderson (born 1959), Scottish politician Heather Anderson (1994–2022), Australian Army soldier and Australian rules footballer Heather Angel (actress) (1909–1986), English actress Heather Angel (photographer) (born 1941), English photographer Heather Elizabeth Apple (born 1948), Canadian writer, artist, and educator, with an interest in organic horticulture Heather Armbrust (born 1977), American professional female bodybuilder Heather Armitage (born 1933), British Olympic sprinter, British record holder for the 100 yards Heather Armstrong (1975–2023), American blogger and internet personality Heather Artinian (born 1993), deaf American lawyer who was the subject of the documentary Sound and Fury when she was a child Heather Asch (born 1966), American puppeteer Heather Ashton (1929–2019), British psychopharmacologist and physician Heather Bagnall (born 1974), American politician Heather Baker (born 1984), American producer, guitarist and musical director Heather Baldwin, American politician Heather Ballinger (born 1982), Australian rugby league footballer Heather Bambrick (born 1971), Canadian jazz singer, voice over artist, radio broadcaster and teacher Heather Bansley (born 1987), Canadian beach volleyball player and Olympian Heather Barnabe, Girls20's CEO Heather Barnett, English artist and academic Heather Baron-Gracie (born 1995), British singer, songwriter, and musician Heather Battaly, American academic Heather Battey, British statistician Heather Bauer, American politician Heather Beers, American actress and freelance writer Heather Bellson, American television producer and writer Heather Berghmans (born 1988), American politician Heather Bergsma (née Richardson; born 1989), American Olympic speed skater Heather Berlin, American neuroscientist and licensed clinical psychologist Heather Bishoff, American politician Heather Bishop (born 1949), Canadian folk singer-songwriter Heather Black (1951–2020), Scottish campaigner Heather Ratnage Black (born 1973), British skeleton coach Heather Blitz (born 1968), American dressage rider and Olympian Heather Blush, Canadian jazz singer Heather Booth (born 1945), American civil rights activist, feminist, and political strategist Heather Botting (born 1948), Canadian academic and Wiccan chaplain Heather Boushey (born 1970), American economist Heather Bown (born 1978), American volleyball player Heather Boyd, American politician Heather Brand (born 1982), Zimbabwean swimmer and Olympian Heather Brandon, South African Girl Guides executive Heather Brandt, American behavioral scientist Heather Bratton (1987–2006), American fashion model Heather Manchin (born 1969), American business executive and CEO of Mylan Heather Brewer-Segal (1931–2006), Bermudian tennis player Heather Bright, American singer, songwriter, DJ and record producer Heather Brigstocke, Baroness Brigstocke (1929–2004), British schoolteacher, academic and Conservative Life Peer Heather Woods Broderick (born 1983), American musician and composer Heather Brooke (born 1970), British-American journalist and freedom of information campaigner Heather Buchman (born 1965), American conductor and trombonist Heather E. Bullock, American social psychologist Heather Burge (born 1971), American basketball player Heather Burke (born 1966), Australian historical archaeologist Heather "Hedy" Burress (born 1973), American actress Heather Burns, American actress Heather Cadsby, Canadian poet and publisher Heather Came, New Zealand activist, academic and anti-racism scholar Heather Cameron, American neuroscientist Heather Cameron, Canadian and British social theorist and social entrepreneur Heather Campbell (born 1973), Inuk artist Heather Anne Campbell, American writer, comedian, podcast host, and actress Heather Carroll, Canadian/British multi-disciplinary artist Heather Carter, American politician Heather Castleden (born 1970), Canadian geographer Heather Chaplet, textile designer based in Burkina Faso Heather Chasen (1927–2020), English actress Heather Child (1911–1997), English calligrapher, heraldic artist, botanical illustrator and author Heather Childers, anchor for Fox and Friends First Heather Christensen (born 1979), American model Heather Christian, American singer, playwright, and composer Heather L. Clah, American and Navajo lawyer Heather Clark (born 1980), American mixed martial artist Heather Clark, South African surfer Heather Clark, American writer, literary critic and academic Heather Clarke (born 1958), Canadian rower and Olympian Heather Cloud, American politician Heather Collins (born 1946), Canadian children's book illustrator Heather Cooke (born 1988), American professional soccer player Heather Conkie, Canadian television writer and producer who began her career as an actress Heather Conley, American president of the German Marshall Fund of the United States Heather Connell, American film director Heather Cook (born 1956), American deposed Episcopal Church bishop Heather Coombridge (born 1953), New Zealand swimmer and Olympian Heather Cooney (born 1989), Irish camogie player Heather Corinna (born 1970), American author, activist, and Internet publisher Heather Corrie (born 1971), British-born slalom canoeist Heather Couper (1949–2020), British astronomer, broadcaster and science populariser Heather Cowell (born 1996), English rugby union player Heather Cox (born 1970), American sportscaster Heather Craney (born 1971), English actress Heather Croall (born 1967), British-Australian filmmaker and festival director Heather Crowe (activist) (1945–2006), Canadian anti-smoking campaigner Heather Currie, British gynaecologist

D–H

Heather Dale, Canadian Celtic folk musician, author, entrepreneur, and filker Heather Daly-Donofrio (born 1969), American professional golfer Heather Davis (born 1974), Canadian rower Heather Day, American artist Heather Deal, Canadian biologist and politician Heather De Lisle (born 1976), American television presenter Heather Dewdney (born 1947), English cricketer Heather Dewey-Hagborg (born 1982), information artist and bio-hacker Heather M. Dick (1932-2007), Scottish microbiologist Heather Doerksen (born 1980), Canadian actress Heather Donahue (born 1974), American actress Heather Doram, Antiguan artist, actor, activist and educator, who is the designer of Antigua and Barbuda's national costume Heather Douglas (born 1969), American philosopher Heather Duby (born 1974), American singer-songwriter Heather Dubbeldam, Canadian architect Heather Dubrow (born 1969), American actress and television personality Heather Eatman (born 1968), American songwriter, singer, graphic artist, and portraitist Heather Edelson (born 1981), American politician A. Heather Eliassen, American public health researcher and academic Heather Rae El Moussa (née Young; born 1987), American model and actress Heather Elvis (1993 – disappeared 2013), American missing person Heather Engebretson (born 1990), American lyric soprano Heather Erickson (born 1993), American Paralympic sitting volleyball player Heather Mae Erickson (born 1977), American artist, craftsperson, and designer Heather Erxleben (born 1966), former Canadian Forces soldier who was the first female to graduate from a Regular Force infantry trades training course Heather Ezell (born 1987), American basketball coach and former player Heather Fargo (born 1952), American politician Heather Farr (1965–1993), American professional golfer on the LPGA Tour Heather Fell (born 1983), British modern pentathlete turned triathlete and Olympian Heather Ferbert, American lawyer and educator Heather M. Ferguson, professor, malaria vector biologist Heather Firbank (1888–1954), English socialite Heather Fischer (born 1988), American racing cyclist Heather Fitzenhagen (born 1960), American politician Heather Fogarty (born 1984), American musician and actress Heather Fong (born 1956), American security official and the former chief of police for San Francisco, California Heather Foord (born 1965), Australian television journalist Heather Ford, South African Researcher, blogger, journalist, social entrepreneur, open source activist Heather Forsyth (born 1950), Canadian politician Heather Foster (born 1966), Jamaican-born American professional bodybuilder Heather Frederiksen (born 1985), British Paralympic swimmer Heather Fuhr (born 1968), Canadian triathlete Heather Galbraith, New Zealand fine art curator and academic Heather B. Gardner (born 1971), American hip-hop artist Heather Garriock (born 1982), Australian former soccer player and coach Heather Gay (born 1974), American television personality, businesswoman and author Heather Gell (1896–1988), Australian kindergarten teacher and early proponent of Dalcroze eurhythmics to Australia Heather George (1907–1983), Australian commercial photographer Heather Gerken (born 1969), American legal scholar Heather Gladney (born 1957), American author Heather Getha-Taylor, American sociologist Heather Giugni, American filmmaker and politician Heather Goad, Canadian linguist Heather Goldenhersh, American actress