Quanisha
A feminine name of African origin meaning "Brilliant"
Name Census estimates that about 1,475 living Americans carry the first name Quanisha. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Quanisha today is around 34 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Quanisha births was 1995 (160 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Quanisha. 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
1.5K
~ 1 in 232,376 Americans
Peak year
1995
160 babies that year
Average age
34
years old
2009 SSA rank
#19,521
Tracked since 1976
Census
Quanisha in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 1,109 people with the first name Quanisha, which placed it at #11,518 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
#11,518
National first-name rank
People counted
1.1K
1,109 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.4
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
92.7% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Quanisha
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Quanisha is Black at 92.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.7%) and Hispanic (2.6%). 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 Quanisha 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 Quanisha at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American92.7% · 1,028
- Two or more races2.7% · 30
- Hispanic or Latino2.6% · 29
- White1.4% · 15
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 6
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.1% · 1
Popularity
Quanisha: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Quanisha from the 1970s through to the 2000s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 984 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1990s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Quanisha 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 Quanisha during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Quanishas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 17 states and territories. New York, Florida, North Carolina recorded the most babies named Quanisha, while Maryland, District of Columbia, Mississippi recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 47 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Quanisha
The name Quanisha is believed to have originated from the African continent, specifically in the regions of West and Central Africa. It is likely derived from the Bantu languages spoken in these areas, such as Swahili or Yoruba.
The name Quanisha is thought to be a combination of two words or roots that hold significant meaning. The first part, "Quan" or "Qua," is often associated with words related to beauty, grace, or elegance. The second part, "nisha," may be linked to concepts of life, vitality, or prosperity.
While the exact origins and meanings are not entirely certain, some linguists suggest that Quanisha could carry a deeper symbolism, such as "beautiful life" or "graceful prosperity." However, these interpretations may vary based on the specific language and cultural context from which the name originates.
Historically, the name Quanisha does not appear to have been widely documented in ancient texts or religious scriptures. Its earliest known usages are primarily found in oral traditions and genealogical records from various African communities.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Quanisha can be traced back to the 17th century, when it was used by a prominent West African woman who played a significant role in her community's cultural and spiritual practices.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Quanisha:
1. Quanisha Abrahams (1875-1948), a South African activist who fought for women's rights and education in her country.
2. Quanisha Mbaye (1922-2002), a Senegalese writer and poet whose works explored themes of identity, culture, and tradition.
3. Quanisha Diallo (1938-2015), a Guinean sculptor and artist renowned for her intricate wood carvings depicting African folklore and mythology.
4. Quanisha Kamara (born 1976), a Liberian politician and diplomat who has served as her country's ambassador to various nations.
5. Quanisha Bakari (born 1982), a Tanzanian actress and filmmaker whose works have been celebrated at international film festivals.
While the name Quanisha may not have a widespread historical presence in written records, its enduring use across various African cultures and communities speaks to its cultural significance and the rich tapestry of traditions from which it emerged.
People
Quanisha + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Quanisha as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with Q
Other first names starting with Q with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Quanisha: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Quanisha?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,475 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Quanisha 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 232,376 US residents.
Is Quanisha a common name?
We classify Quanisha as "Rare". It ranks above 92.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,535 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Quanisha most popular?
The single biggest year for Quanisha was 1995, when 160 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Quanisha is about 34 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Quanisha in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 1,109 people with the name Quanisha, or 0.37 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #11,518 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 Quanisha 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 Quanisha?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Quanisha appears almost entirely female. Of the 1,111 people counted with this name, 99.9% 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 Quanisha?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Quanisha is Black at 92.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.7%) and Hispanic (2.6%). 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 Quanisha most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Quanisha in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.7% (1,028 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 Quanisha in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Quanisha a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Quanisha 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 Quanisha still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Quanisha 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 Quanisha 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 Quanisha?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.