Lameka
A feminine name of uncertain origin, possibly representing the Hebrew phrase "lam echad" meaning "a people not one".
Name Census estimates that about 449 living Americans carry the first name Lameka. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Lameka today is around 43 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Lameka births was 1978 (46 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Lameka. 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
449
~ 1 in 763,373 Americans
Peak year
1978
46 babies that year
Average age
43
years old
2000 SSA rank
#11,319
Tracked since 1973
Census
Lameka in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 385 people with the first name Lameka, which placed it at #24,842 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
#24,842
National first-name rank
People counted
385
385 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
94.3% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Lameka
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Lameka is Black at 94.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.9%) and White (0.8%). 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 Lameka 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 Lameka at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American94.3% · 363
- Two or more races3.9% · 15
- White0.8% · 3
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 3
- Hispanic or Latino0.3% · 1
Popularity
Lameka: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Lameka from the 1970s through to the 2000s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1980s, with 196 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1980s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Lameka 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 Lameka during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Lamekas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 3 states and territories. Mississippi, Georgia, Michigan recorded the most babies named Lameka, while Michigan, Georgia, Mississippi recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 5 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Lameka
The name Lameka has its origins in the Semitic languages, with roots that can be traced back to ancient times. One of the earliest recorded instances of this name can be found in the Book of Genesis, where Lamech is mentioned as a descendant of Cain. The name is believed to be derived from the Hebrew root "lmk," which means "to strike" or "to overcome."
In the biblical narrative, Lamech is portrayed as a polygamist who took two wives, Adah and Zillah. He is also known for a poetic utterance recorded in Genesis 4:23-24, which has been interpreted as a boast or a lament, depending on the translation. This passage has been a subject of scholarly debate and has been referenced in various literary works throughout history.
Beyond its biblical origins, the name Lameka appears to have been used across various cultures and time periods, although its popularity has varied. One notable figure bearing this name was Lameka Porowa, a Maori chieftain and warrior from New Zealand in the late 18th century. He played a significant role in the intertribal conflicts of the era and was known for his bravery and leadership.
In the realm of literature, Lameka is the name of a character in the novel "The Scorpion God" by William Golding, published in 1971. The novel explores themes of power, corruption, and the human condition through the lens of ancient civilizations.
Another historical figure with the name Lameka was Lameka Tiari, a Marquesan chief and leader who lived in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. He was instrumental in negotiating treaties and maintaining relationships between the Marquesan people and European explorers and traders visiting the islands.
Additionally, Lameka Makakonu was a Hawaiian chief and landowner who lived in the early 19th century. He played a role in the transition of Hawaii from a traditional island society to a more modern, Westernized society during the reign of King Kamehameha I.
While these are just a few examples, the name Lameka has been carried by individuals across various cultures and time periods, each with their own unique stories and contributions to their respective societies.
People
Lameka + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Lameka as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with L
Other first names starting with L with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Lameka: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Lameka?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 449 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Lameka 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 763,373 US residents.
Is Lameka a common name?
We classify Lameka as "Very Rare". It ranks above 83.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 480 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Lameka most popular?
The single biggest year for Lameka was 1978, when 46 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Lameka is about 43 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Lameka in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 385 people with the name Lameka, or 0.13 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #24,842 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 Lameka 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 Lameka?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Lameka leans strongly female. 386 people counted with this name were female (98.7%), compared with 5 male bearers (1.3%). 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 Lameka?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Lameka is Black at 94.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.9%) and White (0.8%). 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 Lameka most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Lameka in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.3% (363 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 Lameka in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Lameka a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Lameka 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 Lameka still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Lameka 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 Lameka 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 common is the name Lameka?
See how many people share the name Lameka on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.