Ciena
Of Latin origin, meaning "heavenly" or "from the sky".
Name Census estimates that about 347 living Americans carry the first name Ciena. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Ciena today is around 17 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Ciena births was 2007 (27 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Ciena. 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 Ciena with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
347
~ 1 in 987,765 Americans
Peak year
2007
27 babies that year
Average age
17
years old
2024 SSA rank
#12,397
Tracked since 1994
Census
Ciena in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 303 people with the first name Ciena, which placed it at #29,290 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
#29,290
National first-name rank
People counted
303
303 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
42.2% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Ciena
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Ciena is White at 42.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (34.7%) and Two or More Races (8.6%). 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 Ciena 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 Ciena at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White42.2% · 128
- Hispanic or Latino34.7% · 105
- Two or more races8.6% · 26
- Black or African American6.6% · 20
- Asian and Pacific Islander6.6% · 20
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.3% · 4
Popularity
Ciena: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Ciena from the 1990s through to the 2020s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 160 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2000s peak, Ciena remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Ciena 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 Ciena during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Cienas live
Origin
Meaning and history of Ciena
The name Ciena has its origins in the ancient Etruscan civilization, which flourished in what is now modern-day Italy from around the 8th century BC to the 1st century BC. It is believed to be derived from the Etruscan word "cien," which means "sky" or "heavens." This suggests that the name may have been given to children as a symbolic gesture, representing the wish for them to reach great heights or achieve lofty goals.
In the early days of the Roman Empire, the name Ciena was occasionally used by Roman families with Etruscan roots or connections. However, it was relatively rare and did not appear to hold any particular significance beyond its Etruscan origins. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in a Roman census record from the year 48 AD, where a woman named Ciena Claudia is listed as a resident of the city of Pompeii.
As the centuries passed, the name fell into obscurity and was largely forgotten until the Renaissance period. During this time, there was a renewed interest in classical antiquity, and scholars began to rediscover and study Etruscan culture and language. This revival led to a resurgence of interest in names with Etruscan origins, including Ciena.
One of the earliest prominent individuals to bear the name Ciena in modern times was Ciena di Piero (1437-1519), an Italian painter and illuminator of manuscripts from Florence. Her work can be found in collections throughout Italy and is noted for its intricate detail and vibrant colors.
Another notable figure was Ciena Mariani (1556-1624), a Venetian composer and lutenist who was one of the first women to achieve recognition in the male-dominated world of Renaissance music. Her compositions, particularly her lute works, were widely admired and influenced the development of early Baroque music.
In the 19th century, Ciena Lowell (1819-1897) was an American poet and abolitionist from Massachusetts. She was a member of the famous Lowell family and used her writing to advocate for the abolition of slavery and women's rights. Her poetry collection, "Poems of the Heart," published in 1855, was widely praised for its emotional depth and social commentary.
Moving into the 20th century, Ciena Bakhmeteva (1901-1989) was a Russian-born dancer and choreographer who played a significant role in the development of modern dance in the United States. She founded the Ciena Bakhmeteva Dance Company in New York City and was known for her innovative and expressive choreography, which blended elements of classical ballet with more contemporary movements.
In more recent times, Ciena Ríos (born 1976) is a Mexican actress and singer who has appeared in numerous telenovelas and films. She is also a successful recording artist, with several albums that have topped the Latin music charts and earned her numerous awards and accolades.
While the name Ciena may have its roots in ancient Etruscan culture, it has endured through the centuries and continues to be used in various cultures and contexts around the world today.
People
Ciena + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Ciena as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with C
Other first names starting with C with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Ciena: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Ciena?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 347 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Ciena 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 987,765 US residents.
Is Ciena a common name?
We classify Ciena as "Very Rare". It ranks above 80.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 352 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Ciena most popular?
The single biggest year for Ciena was 2007, when 27 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Ciena is about 17 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Ciena in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 303 people with the name Ciena, or 0.10 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #29,290 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 Ciena 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 Ciena?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Ciena appears almost entirely female. Of the 304 people counted with this name, 99.0% 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 Ciena?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Ciena is White at 42.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (34.7%) and Two or More Races (8.6%). 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 Ciena most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Ciena in the 2020 Census, accounting for 42.2% (128 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 Ciena in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Ciena a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Ciena 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 Ciena still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Ciena 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 Ciena 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 Ciena?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.