Davia
A feminine name of French origin meaning "beloved, little darling".
Name Census estimates that about 1,131 living Americans carry the first name Davia. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Davia today is around 31 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Davia births was 1999 (47 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Davia. 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 Davia with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
1.1K
~ 1 in 303,054 Americans
Peak year
1999
47 babies that year
Average age
31
years old
2024 SSA rank
#9,678
Tracked since 1945
Census
Davia in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 1,305 people with the first name Davia, which placed it at #10,283 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
#10,283
National first-name rank
People counted
1.3K
1,305 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.4
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
52.8% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Davia
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Davia is Black at 52.8%. The next largest groups are White (33.4%) and Hispanic (8.1%). 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 Davia 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 Davia at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American52.8% · 689
- White33.4% · 436
- Hispanic or Latino8.1% · 106
- Two or more races4.0% · 52
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.1% · 14
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 8
Popularity
Davia: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Davia from the 1940s through to the 2020s, spanning 9 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 296 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Davia 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 Davia during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Davias live
The SSA's state-level files cover 3 states and territories. New York, California, South Carolina recorded the most babies named Davia, while South Carolina, California, New York recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 13 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Davia
The name Davia is of uncertain origin, with multiple theories proposed about its roots and meaning. One possibility is that it derives from the Sanskrit word "davi," meaning "to give" or "to bestow." This linguistic connection suggests that Davia may have been a name used in ancient India, perhaps signifying generosity or benevolence.
Another theory traces Davia's origins to the Latin word "davus," which referred to a type of Roman nail or stud. In this interpretation, the name could symbolize strength, durability, or perhaps a profession related to metalworking or construction.
Alternatively, some scholars have linked Davia to the Old Germanic name "Dava," which may have been a feminine form of the name David. If this is the case, Davia would share the Hebrew roots of David, meaning "beloved" or "friend."
While the exact origins of the name remain obscure, historical records provide glimpses of its usage over time. In the 12th century, a figure known as Davia of Auxerre was a renowned French scholar and theologian, known for her contributions to the study of canon law.
Several centuries later, in the late 16th century, a woman named Davia Ardinghi gained recognition as a skilled Renaissance painter in Italy. Her works, which included religious paintings and portraits, can still be found in various churches and galleries across Europe.
In the realm of literature, a character named Davia appeared in the novel "The Vicar of Wakefield" by Oliver Goldsmith, published in 1766. While a fictional figure, her presence in this classic work of literature suggests that the name held some familiarity and usage during that era.
Fast-forwarding to the 19th century, Davia Bethune was an American activist and educator who played a significant role in the establishment of schools for formerly enslaved individuals in the South after the Civil War. Her efforts contributed to the advancement of educational opportunities for marginalized communities.
Finally, in the early 20th century, Davia Benedictova was a renowned Czech writer and translator, known for her works that explored themes of identity, feminism, and social issues. Her writings and advocacy for women's rights left a lasting impact on Czech literature and cultural discourse.
These historical examples, spanning various fields and time periods, illustrate the enduring presence of the name Davia, even if its precise origins remain shrouded in mystery.
People
Davia + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Davia as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with D
Other first names starting with D with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Davia: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Davia?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,131 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Davia 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 303,054 US residents.
Is Davia a common name?
We classify Davia as "Rare". It ranks above 90.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,198 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Davia most popular?
The single biggest year for Davia was 1999, when 47 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Davia 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 Davia in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 1,305 people with the name Davia, or 0.43 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #10,283 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 Davia 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 Davia?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Davia leans strongly female. 1,181 people counted with this name were female (90.8%), compared with 120 male bearers (9.2%). 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 Davia?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Davia is Black at 52.8%. The next largest groups are White (33.4%) and Hispanic (8.1%). 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 Davia most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Davia in the 2020 Census, accounting for 52.8% (689 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 Davia in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Davia a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Davia 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 Davia still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Davia 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 Davia 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 are named Davia?
Find out how many Americans are named Davia on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.