Makoa
Hawaiian origin meaning "brave, daring" or "wild, untamed plant".
Name Census estimates that about 1,277 living Americans carry the first name Makoa. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Makoa today is around 11 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Makoa births was 2024 (191 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Makoa. 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 Makoa with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Makoa is a relatively new arrival in the SSA data. The average bearer is just 11 years old, meaning it gained most of its traction in the last two decades.
People living today
1.3K
~ 1 in 268,406 Americans
Peak year
2024
191 babies that year
Average age
11
years old
2024 SSA rank
#1,117
Tracked since 1992
Census
Makoa in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 663 people with the first name Makoa, which placed it at #16,857 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
#16,857
National first-name rank
People counted
663
663 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Two or more races
39.2% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Makoa
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Makoa is Two or More Races at 39.2%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (26.7%) and Hispanic (20.5%). 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 Makoa 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 Makoa at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Two or more races39.2% · 260
- Asian and Pacific Islander26.7% · 177
- Hispanic or Latino20.5% · 136
- White11.8% · 78
- Black or African American1.1% · 7
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 5
Popularity
Makoa: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Makoa from the 1990s through to the 2020s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2020s, with 609 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Makoa 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 Makoa during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Makoas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 18 states and territories. Hawaii, California, Washington recorded the most babies named Makoa, while Pennsylvania, Missouri, Georgia recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 45 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Makoa
The name Makoa has its origins in the Polynesian languages spoken across the Pacific islands. It is believed to have originated in the Hawaiian language, where it was derived from the word 'mākoā,' meaning 'fearless' or 'brave.' The name dates back to the ancient Polynesian culture, which thrived across the Hawaiian Islands, Samoa, Tonga, and other island nations.
In Hawaiian mythology, Makoa was the name of a legendary chief known for his bravery and prowess in battle. This association with valor and strength likely contributed to the name's popularity among the Hawaiian people. The earliest recorded instances of the name Makoa can be found in Hawaiian oral traditions and chants passed down through generations.
One of the earliest documented individuals with the name Makoa was a Hawaiian chief who lived in the late 18th century. He was known for his involvement in the conflicts between the various islands during that period. Another notable figure was Makoa Kamau, a Hawaiian warrior who fought alongside King Kamehameha I in the late 18th and early 19th centuries.
Beyond Hawaii, the name Makoa has also been used in other Polynesian cultures. In Samoa, for instance, the name has been recorded as far back as the 19th century. One of the most famous Samoans to bear the name was Makoa Sopi, a renowned wood carver and artist who lived in the early 20th century.
In the realm of sports, Makoa Freitas was a prominent Hawaiian surfer who competed in the 1970s and 1980s. He was known for his innovative approach to surfing and his contributions to the sport's development in Hawaii.
Another notable individual with the name Makoa was Makoa Kauali'i, a Hawaiian musician and composer who lived in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He was instrumental in preserving and promoting traditional Hawaiian music and helped shape the genre's modern form.
While the name Makoa has its roots in Polynesian cultures, it has also gained popularity in other parts of the world, particularly among those with an appreciation for its historical and cultural significance. However, the name's rich history and connections to the brave warriors and respected figures of ancient Polynesian societies remain an integral part of its essence.
People
Makoa + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Makoa as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with M
Other first names starting with M with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Makoa: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Makoa?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,277 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Makoa 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 268,406 US residents.
Is Makoa a common name?
We classify Makoa as "Rare". It ranks above 91.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,288 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Makoa most popular?
The single biggest year for Makoa was 2024, when 191 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Makoa is about 11 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Makoa in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 663 people with the name Makoa, or 0.22 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #16,857 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 Makoa 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 Makoa?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Makoa leans strongly male. 653 people counted with this name were male (98.3%), compared with 11 female bearers (1.7%). 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 Makoa?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Makoa is Two or More Races at 39.2%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (26.7%) and Hispanic (20.5%). 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 Makoa most often in the Census?
Two or More Races is the largest reported group for people named Makoa in the 2020 Census, accounting for 39.2% (260 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 Makoa in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Makoa a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Makoa in the SSA data are male. 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 Makoa still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Makoa 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 Makoa 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 have Makoa as a first name?
For a quick modern take, check how many Americans are named Makoa on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.