Ksenia
Feminine name of Greek origin meaning "hospitable" or "welcoming stranger".
Name Census estimates that about 510 living Americans carry the first name Ksenia. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Ksenia today is around 16 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Ksenia births was 2016 (34 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Ksenia. 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 Ksenia with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
510
~ 1 in 672,067 Americans
Peak year
2016
34 babies that year
Average age
16
years old
2024 SSA rank
#6,039
Tracked since 1955
Census
Ksenia in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 1,701 people with the first name Ksenia, which placed it at #8,520 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
#8,520
National first-name rank
People counted
1.7K
1,701 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.6
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
94.5% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Ksenia
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Ksenia is White at 94.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.4%) and Two or More Races (2.1%). 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 Ksenia 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 Ksenia at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.5% · 1,607
- Hispanic or Latino2.4% · 40
- Two or more races2.1% · 35
- Black or African American0.6% · 11
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 8
Popularity
Ksenia: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Ksenia from the 1950s through to the 2020s, spanning 7 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 227 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Ksenia remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Ksenia 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 Ksenia during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Ksenias live
The SSA's state-level files cover 3 states and territories. California, Florida, New York recorded the most babies named Ksenia, while New York, Florida, California recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 15 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Ksenia
The name Ksenia originates from the Greek language and has its roots in the word "xenia," which means "hospitality" or "stranger." It gained popularity in the Byzantine Empire during the medieval period and was often associated with the concept of welcoming and embracing foreigners or outsiders.
The earliest recorded use of the name Ksenia can be traced back to the 5th century AD, when it was mentioned in various Byzantine chronicles and hagiographies (biographies of saints). One notable historical figure bearing this name was Saint Xenia of St. Petersburg, a revered Orthodox Christian saint who lived in the 18th century (circa 1719-1803). She was known for her asceticism, humility, and charitable acts towards the poor.
In the 9th century, the name gained further prominence with the birth of Ksenia Derzhavina (844-900), a princess of the Kievan Rus' and the daughter of the Grand Prince Rurik. Her marriage to the Byzantine prince Vazul Likhud played a significant role in strengthening the political ties between the Kievan Rus' and the Byzantine Empire.
Another notable figure in history with the name Ksenia was Ksenia Mikhailovna Romanova (1789-1856), a Russian Grand Duchess and the daughter of Tsar Paul I. She was known for her philanthropic work and her support of various charitable organizations during her lifetime.
In the 20th century, the name Ksenia gained popularity in Russia and other Slavic countries. One of the most famous individuals bearing this name was Ksenia Alexandrovna Deryugina (1902-1988), a renowned Russian botanist and plant physiologist. Her groundbreaking research on plant hormones and their role in plant growth and development earned her widespread recognition in the scientific community.
Another notable figure was Ksenia Georgiyevna Simonova (1919-2007), a Soviet and Russian theater and film actress who starred in numerous acclaimed productions throughout her career. She was honored with the prestigious title of People's Artist of the USSR in 1966.
While the name Ksenia has its origins in the Greek language and gained prominence during the Byzantine era, it has since been embraced by various cultures and societies, particularly in Eastern Europe and Russia. Its connection to the concept of hospitality and welcoming strangers has given the name a unique and enduring appeal throughout history.
People
Ksenia + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Ksenia as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with K
Other first names starting with K with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Ksenia: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Ksenia?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 510 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Ksenia 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 672,067 US residents.
Is Ksenia a common name?
We classify Ksenia as "Very Rare". It ranks above 84.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 519 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Ksenia most popular?
The single biggest year for Ksenia was 2016, when 34 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Ksenia is about 16 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Ksenia in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 1,701 people with the name Ksenia, or 0.56 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #8,520 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 Ksenia 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 Ksenia?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Ksenia appears almost entirely female. Of the 1,698 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 Ksenia?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Ksenia is White at 94.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.4%) and Two or More Races (2.1%). 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 Ksenia most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Ksenia in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.5% (1,607 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 Ksenia in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Ksenia a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Ksenia 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 Ksenia still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Ksenia 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 Ksenia 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 Ksenia?
You can see how many people share the name Ksenia on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.