Refugia
A feminine name derived from Latin meaning "haven" or "refuge".
Name Census estimates that about 263 living Americans carry the first name Refugia. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Refugia today is around 75 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Refugia births was 1926 (46 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Refugia. 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 Refugia is about 75 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Refugias were born before 1961.
People living today
263
~ 1 in 1,303,248 Americans
Peak year
1926
46 babies that year
Average age
75
years old
1926 SSA rank
#4,701
Tracked since 1883
Census
Refugia in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 542 people with the first name Refugia, which placed it at #19,479 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
#19,479
National first-name rank
People counted
542
542 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Hispanic or Latino
97.6% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Refugia
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Refugia is Hispanic at 97.6%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (1.3%) and White (1.1%). 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 Refugia 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 Refugia at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino97.6% · 529
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.3% · 7
- White1.1% · 6
Gender
Gender distribution for Refugia
Out of the 1,294 babies given the name Refugia since 1880, 99.6% were registered as female. The name sits firmly on the female side of the spectrum, with only a handful of male registrations across the entire dataset.
Refugia as a male name
- Ranked #4,701 in 1926
- 5 male births in 1926
- Peak: 1926 (5 births)
Refugia as a female name
- Ranked #12,740 in 1987
- 5 female births in 1987
- Peak: 1923 (41 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Refugia appears almost entirely female. Of the 547 people counted with this name, 99.3% were female and only a very small share were male.
Popularity
Refugia: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Refugia from the 1880s through to the 1980s, spanning 11 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 343 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1920s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Refugia 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 Refugia during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Refugias live
Origin
Meaning and history of Refugia
The given name Refugia originated from the Latin word "refugium," which means "refuge" or "shelter." It emerged during the late Roman period and was initially used as a symbolic name, often given to children born during times of conflict or upheaval. The name was intended to convey a sense of protection and hope for a safe haven.
Refugia can be traced back to early Christian communities in the Mediterranean region, particularly in areas that were under Roman rule. It was a popular name among early Christian families who sought refuge from persecution or sought solace in their faith. The name may have been inspired by biblical references to God as a refuge, such as in Psalms 46:1, "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble."
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Refugia dates back to the 5th century CE. In historical records, a woman named Refugia is mentioned as a member of a Christian community in Carthage, North Africa. She was known for her acts of charity and for providing shelter to those in need during times of conflict.
Throughout the Middle Ages, the name Refugia gained popularity across Europe, particularly in regions with strong Catholic traditions. It was often associated with religious orders and convents, where women took on the name as a symbol of their dedication to providing spiritual refuge and care for the less fortunate.
Notable individuals with the name Refugia include:
1. Refugia of Seville (c. 1100-1170), a Spanish mystic and abbess known for her visions and spiritual writings.
2. Refugia Salviati (1499-1567), an Italian noblewoman and patron of the arts, who supported the work of artists such as Michelangelo and Raphael.
3. Refugia Cuesta (1801-1867), a Mexican nun and educator who founded several schools for girls and championed women's education.
4. Refugia de la Luz (1865-1936), a Spanish nun and founder of the Congregation of the Servants of the Blessed Sacrament, dedicated to providing spiritual refuge and care for the poor.
5. Refugia Barton (1905-1986), an American artist and painter known for her landscapes and depictions of Native American life.
While the name Refugia may not be as common today as it once was, it remains a powerful reminder of the enduring human need for shelter, safety, and spiritual solace in times of adversity.
People
Refugia + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Refugia as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with R
Other first names starting with R with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Refugia: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Refugia?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 263 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Refugia 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 1,303,248 US residents.
Is Refugia a common name?
We classify Refugia as "Very Rare". It ranks above 77.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,294 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Refugia most popular?
The single biggest year for Refugia was 1926, when 46 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Refugia is about 75 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Refugia in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 542 people with the name Refugia, or 0.18 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #19,479 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 Refugia 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 Refugia?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Refugia appears almost entirely female. Of the 547 people counted with this name, 99.3% 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 Refugia?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Refugia is Hispanic at 97.6%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (1.3%) and White (1.1%). 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 Refugia most often in the Census?
Hispanic is the largest reported group for people named Refugia in the 2020 Census, accounting for 97.6% (529 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 Refugia in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Refugia a female name?
Yes, 99.6% of people registered as Refugia 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 Refugia still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Refugia 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 Refugia 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 Refugia as a first name?
If you just want to know how many people have the name Refugia, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.