Beya
A feminine African name meaning "princess" in the Lingala language.
Name Census estimates that about 252 living Americans carry the first name Beya. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Beya today is around 11 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Beya births was 2009 (20 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Beya. 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 Beya with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
252
~ 1 in 1,360,136 Americans
Peak year
2009
20 babies that year
Average age
11
years old
2024 SSA rank
#7,629
Tracked since 2002
Popularity
Beya: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Beya from the 2000s through to the 2020s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 153 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Beya remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Beya 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 Beya during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Beyas live
Origin
Meaning and history of Beya
The name Beya is believed to have originated from the Bantu languages of Africa, particularly in the region of central and eastern Africa. It is derived from the root word "beya," which means "to come" or "to arrive" in some Bantu dialects.
The earliest recorded use of the name Beya dates back to the 15th century, when it was used among various Bantu-speaking communities in the Great Lakes region of Africa. During this time, the name was often given to children born after a long and difficult pregnancy or after the safe return of a family member from a journey.
In the 16th century, the name Beya appeared in some historical records and oral traditions of the Luba people, an ethnic group residing in the present-day Democratic Republic of Congo. According to these accounts, there was a prominent figure named Beya who played a significant role in the establishment of the Luba Kingdom.
One of the earliest known historical figures bearing the name Beya was Beya Mputu, a Luba ruler who reigned in the late 17th century. He is credited with expanding the territory of the Luba Kingdom and strengthening its trade networks with neighboring regions.
Another notable individual with the name Beya was Beya Nakalanga, a Lunda chieftain from present-day Zambia in the 19th century. He was known for his diplomatic skills and played a crucial role in mediating disputes between various tribes in the region.
In the 20th century, Beya Remé Nzikobanyanka was a renowned writer and poet from the Democratic Republic of Congo. Born in 1920, she was a pioneering figure in African literature and contributed significantly to the preservation of the Luba culture and traditions through her works.
Another notable figure was Beya Makuma, a Congolese politician and activist who fought for the independence of the Democratic Republic of Congo in the 1960s. He served as a member of the Congolese parliament and was a vocal advocate for human rights and social justice.
While the name Beya has its roots in the Bantu languages, it has also gained popularity in other parts of Africa and beyond. However, it is essential to note that the historical and cultural significance of the name is primarily rooted in the Bantu-speaking communities of central and eastern Africa.
People
Beya + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Beya as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with B
Other first names starting with B with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Beya: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Beya?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 252 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Beya 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 1,360,136 US residents.
Is Beya a common name?
We classify Beya as "Very Rare". It ranks above 77.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 254 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Beya most popular?
The single biggest year for Beya was 2009, when 20 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Beya is about 11 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
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 Beya in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Beya a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Beya 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 Beya still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Beya 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 Beya 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.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people are called Beya?
You can see how many Americans are named Beya on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.