Parma
A feminine name of Italian origin meaning a circular shield.
Name Census estimates that about 9 living Americans carry the first name Parma. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Parma today is around 76 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Parma births was 1922 (7 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Parma. 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.
Key insights
- • The typical person named Parma is about 76 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Parmas were born before 1960.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Parma. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
9
~ 1 in 38,083,815 Americans
Peak year
1922
7 babies that year
Average age
76
years old
1956 SSA rank
#6,651
Tracked since 1915
Census
Parma in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 118 people with the first name Parma, which placed it at #50,661 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
#50,661
National first-name rank
People counted
118
118 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.0
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
66.9% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Parma
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Parma is White at 66.9%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (28.0%) and Black (2.5%). 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 Parma 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 Parma at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White66.9% · 79
- Asian and Pacific Islander28.0% · 33
- Black or African American2.5% · 3
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.5% · 3
Popularity
Parma: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Parma from the 1910s through to the 1950s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1910s, with 11 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1910s peak, Parma remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Parma 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 Parma during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Parma
The name Parma has its roots in the ancient Italian city of Parma, located in the northern region of Emilia-Romagna. The name is derived from the Latin word "Parma," which was the name of the city during Roman times. The city's name is believed to have originated from the Etruscan word "parma," meaning "round buckler" or "shield." This suggests that the name may have been associated with the city's defensive fortifications or its inhabitants' skill in warfare.
One of the earliest known references to the name Parma dates back to the 1st century BC when the Roman historian Livy mentioned the city in his work "Ab Urbe Condita." The city was an important center of trade and culture during the Roman Empire and later became a prosperous city-state in the Middle Ages.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Parma. One of the earliest was Parma of Armageddon, a Christian martyr who lived in the 3rd century AD and was executed during the Diocletian persecution. Another famous bearer of the name was Parma il Vecchio, an Italian Renaissance painter from Parma who lived from 1470 to 1540 and was known for his religious works.
In the 16th century, Parma Pallavicino was an Italian nobleman and military leader who fought for the Spanish crown during the Italian Wars. He played a crucial role in the defense of Milan against the French in 1524.
During the 18th century, Parma Violante was an Italian composer and musician who served as the music director for the court of the Bourbon Dukes of Parma. She composed several operas and instrumental works and was highly regarded in her time.
In more recent history, Parma Desai was an Indian freedom fighter and social activist who played a significant role in the Indian independence movement during the early 20th century. She was a close associate of Mahatma Gandhi and worked tirelessly for the upliftment of women and the underprivileged.
The name Parma has a rich history rooted in the ancient city of Parma and its cultural and military significance. It has been borne by individuals from various backgrounds, including martyrs, artists, military leaders, composers, and social activists, reflecting the diverse and rich tapestry of human experience associated with this name.
People
Parma + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Parma as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with P
Other first names starting with P with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Parma: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Parma?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 9 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Parma 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 38,083,815 US residents.
Is Parma a common name?
We classify Parma as "Very Rare". It ranks above 25.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 33 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Parma most popular?
The single biggest year for Parma was 1922, when 7 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Parma is about 76 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Parma in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 118 people with the name Parma, or 0.04 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #50,661 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 Parma 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 Parma?
The 2020 Census sex table shows Parma on both sides of the split. Of the 124 people counted with this name, 36 were male (29.0%) and 88 were female (71.0%). 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 Parma?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Parma is White at 66.9%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (28.0%) and Black (2.5%). 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 Parma most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Parma in the 2020 Census, accounting for 66.9% (79 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 Parma in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Parma a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Parma 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 Parma still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Parma 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 Parma 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 Parma?
Find out how many Americans are named Parma on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.