Genia
A feminine name of Greek origin meaning "noble," "well-born," or "aristocratic."
Name Census estimates that about 1,254 living Americans carry the first name Genia. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Genia today is around 54 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Genia births was 1964 (57 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Genia. 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.
People living today
1.3K
~ 1 in 273,329 Americans
Peak year
1964
57 babies that year
Average age
54
years old
2020 SSA rank
#15,911
Tracked since 1886
Census
Genia in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 1,554 people with the first name Genia, which placed it at #9,103 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
#9,103
National first-name rank
People counted
1.6K
1,554 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.5
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
63.3% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Genia
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Genia is White at 63.3%. The next largest groups are Black (22.3%) and Hispanic (6.8%). 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 Genia 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 Genia at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White63.3% · 984
- Black or African American22.3% · 346
- Hispanic or Latino6.8% · 106
- Two or more races3.6% · 56
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.7% · 42
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.3% · 20
Popularity
Genia: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Genia from the 1880s through to the 2020s, spanning 15 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1960s, with 463 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1960s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Genia 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 Genia during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Genias live
The SSA's state-level files cover 11 states and territories. California, Texas, North Carolina recorded the most babies named Genia, while Tennessee, Ohio, New York recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 11 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Genia
The name Genia is derived from the Greek word "genos," which means "race" or "family." It is a feminine form of the name Eugene, which has its roots in the Greek word "eugenes," meaning "well-born" or "of noble birth." The name Genia is believed to have originated in Greece during ancient times.
In ancient Greek literature, the name Genia is mentioned in various texts, including the works of Homer and Hesiod. It was a popular name among the aristocratic families of ancient Greece, often given to daughters born into noble lineages.
The earliest recorded use of the name Genia can be traced back to the 5th century BCE. One notable historical figure bearing this name was Genia of Lemnos, a renowned philosopher and mathematician who lived during the 4th century BCE. She is believed to have made significant contributions to the field of geometry.
Another notable figure named Genia was a Christian martyr who lived during the 3rd century CE in the Roman Empire. She is venerated as a saint in the Eastern Orthodox Church for her unwavering faith and sacrifice.
In the medieval period, the name Genia was popular among the Byzantine nobility. One notable example is Genia Palaiologina, a Byzantine princess who lived in the 14th century and was known for her scholarly pursuits and patronage of the arts.
During the Renaissance, the name Genia gained popularity among the Italian nobility. One prominent figure was Genia Borgia, a member of the powerful Borgia family, who lived in the 15th century and was known for her intelligence and political acumen.
In more recent history, Genia Nourry (1894-1972) was a French writer and poet who gained recognition for her lyrical works and contributions to the Surrealist movement. Another notable figure was Genia Efimovna Sokolova (1897-1986), a Russian ballerina and choreographer who had a significant influence on the development of modern dance.
While the name Genia is not as common in contemporary times, it continues to hold a rich historical and cultural significance, particularly in the Greek and Eastern European regions, where it has been carried on through generations.
People
Genia + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Genia as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with G
Other first names starting with G with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Genia: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Genia?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,254 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Genia 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 273,329 US residents.
Is Genia a common name?
We classify Genia as "Rare". It ranks above 91.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,673 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Genia most popular?
The single biggest year for Genia was 1964, when 57 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Genia is about 54 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Genia in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 1,554 people with the name Genia, or 0.51 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #9,103 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 Genia 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 Genia?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Genia appears almost entirely female. Of the 1,550 people counted with this name, 99.2% 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 Genia?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Genia is White at 63.3%. The next largest groups are Black (22.3%) and Hispanic (6.8%). 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 Genia most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Genia in the 2020 Census, accounting for 63.3% (984 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 Genia in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Genia a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Genia 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 Genia still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Genia 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 Genia 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 called Genia?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.