Archana
A feminine given name of Hindu origin meaning "prayer" or "invocation".
Name Census estimates that about 393 living Americans carry the first name Archana. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Archana today is around 31 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Archana births was 1989 (17 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Archana. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Archana with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
393
~ 1 in 872,148 Americans
Peak year
1989
17 babies that year
Average age
31
years old
2018 SSA rank
#12,614
Tracked since 1972
Census
Archana in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 4,697 people with the first name Archana, which placed it at #4,103 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#4,103
National first-name rank
People counted
4.7K
4,697 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
1.6
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Asian and Pacific Islander
97.7% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Archana
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Archana is Asian/Pacific Islander at 97.7%. The next largest groups are White (1.4%) and Two or More Races (0.3%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Archana described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Archana at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander97.7% · 4,590
- White1.4% · 64
- Two or more races0.3% · 16
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 10
- Black or African American0.2% · 9
- Hispanic or Latino0.2% · 8
Popularity
Archana: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Archana from the 1970s through to the 2010s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 116 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2000s peak, Archana remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Archana by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Archana during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Archana
The name Archana originates from the Sanskrit language and has its roots in ancient Indian culture. It is derived from the Sanskrit word "archan," which means "to worship" or "to praise." The name gained prominence in Hindu mythology and religious texts.
Archana is often associated with the Hindu goddess Lakshmi, the deity of wealth, fortune, and prosperity. In the Puranas, ancient Hindu scriptures, Archana is described as a manifestation of Lakshmi and is revered for her beauty, grace, and auspiciousness.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Archana can be traced back to the Mahabharata, an ancient Indian epic. In this epic, Archana is mentioned as the daughter of the sage Shukra and the wife of the demon king Bali.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Archana. One of the most famous was Archana Sharma (1959-2008), an Indian Hindustani classical singer and music composer. She was renowned for her contributions to the Khayal and Thumri genres and received numerous accolades, including the Padma Shri, one of India's highest civilian honors.
Another notable Archana was Archana Puran Singh (born 1961), an Indian actress, comedian, and television host. She is best known for her roles in various Bollywood films and her appearances on popular comedy shows like "The Kapil Sharma Show."
In the field of literature, Archana Venkatesan (born 1975) is a renowned Indian author and journalist. She has written several books, including the acclaimed novel "The Sharper Word: A Modern Hindu Woman on Ancient Commentary."
Archana Ramasundaram (born 1968) is an Indian social entrepreneur and the founder of Aachi Charitable Trust, an organization dedicated to empowering rural women through education and livelihood opportunities.
Archana Vijaya (born 1985) is an Indian classical dancer and choreographer. She is known for her performances in the Kuchipudi and Bharatanatyam dance styles and has received numerous awards for her contributions to the art form.
These are just a few examples of prominent individuals who have borne the name Archana throughout history. The name continues to hold significance and appeal in various parts of the world, particularly in India and among the Hindu diaspora.
People
Archana + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Archana as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with A
Other first names starting with A with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Archana: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Archana?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 393 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Archana going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 872,148 US residents.
Is Archana a common name?
We classify Archana as "Very Rare". It ranks above 82.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 408 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Archana most popular?
The single biggest year for Archana was 1989, when 17 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Archana is about 31 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Archana in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 4,697 people with the name Archana, or 1.56 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #4,103 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Archana in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Archana?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Archana appears almost entirely female. Of the 4,705 people counted with this name, 99.7% were female and only a very small share were male. The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Archana?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Archana is Asian/Pacific Islander at 97.7%. The next largest groups are White (1.4%) and Two or More Races (0.3%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Archana most often in the Census?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest reported group for people named Archana in the 2020 Census, accounting for 97.7% (4,590 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Archana in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Archana a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Archana in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Archana still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Archana in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Archana can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
How many people share the name Archana?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.