Sonjia
A feminine name of uncertain origin, possibly Russian or Ukrainian diminutive of Sophia.
Name Census estimates that about 826 living Americans carry the first name Sonjia. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Sonjia today is around 61 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Sonjia births was 1967 (55 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Sonjia. 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
826
~ 1 in 414,957 Americans
Peak year
1967
55 babies that year
Average age
61
years old
2007 SSA rank
#20,169
Tracked since 1938
Census
Sonjia in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 939 people with the first name Sonjia, which placed it at #13,019 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
#13,019
National first-name rank
People counted
939
939 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.3
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
49.9% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Sonjia
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Sonjia is White at 49.9%. The next largest groups are Black (34.8%) and Hispanic (9.4%). 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 Sonjia 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 Sonjia at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White49.9% · 469
- Black or African American34.8% · 327
- Hispanic or Latino9.4% · 88
- Two or more races4.6% · 43
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 7
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 5
Popularity
Sonjia: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Sonjia from the 1930s through to the 2000s, spanning 8 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1960s, with 346 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1960s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Sonjia 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 Sonjia during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Sonjias live
The SSA's state-level files cover 5 states and territories. California, Texas, Florida recorded the most babies named Sonjia, while Tennessee, Illinois, Florida recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 16 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Sonjia
The name Sonjia is a feminine given name with origins tracing back to the Sanskrit language of ancient India. Derived from the Sanskrit word "soṇā" meaning "golden" or "reddish-brown", the name was initially used to describe the golden hue of the sun or the rich, earthy tones of the soil.
During the Vedic period, the name Sonjia appeared in various Hindu texts and scriptures, often associated with deities or figures representing the radiant warmth and life-giving properties of the sun. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Rig Veda, an ancient collection of Vedic Sanskrit hymns.
As the name spread beyond the Indian subcontinent, it underwent various phonetic and spelling alterations across different regions and cultures. In ancient Persia, the name took the form "Sonjia" and was borne by Sonjia Mardavij, a renowned poet and scholar who lived during the 10th century CE.
The name gained popularity in Europe during the Middle Ages, particularly in regions with strong trade and cultural ties to the East. In 12th century Italy, the name was recorded as "Sonjia" and belonged to Sonjia di Firenze, a skilled artisan renowned for her intricate metalwork and jewelry designs.
During the Renaissance period, the name Sonjia was associated with several notable figures, including Sonjia Veronese (1528-1588), a celebrated Venetian painter known for her vibrant portraiture and mastery of color. Another noteworthy bearer of the name was Sonjia Gozzadini (1549-1628), an Italian noblewoman and patron of the arts who hosted a renowned salon frequented by intellectuals and artists of the time.
In the 18th century, Sonjia Vigée-Lebrun (1755-1842), a French portrait painter, gained international recognition for her elegant and sophisticated works, which captured the essence of the aristocratic circles she moved in. Her artistic talents and pioneering spirit as a female artist of her era made her a significant figure in the history of European art.
While the name Sonjia has maintained a presence throughout various cultures and time periods, its roots can be traced back to the Sanskrit language and the ancient Indian subcontinent, where it originated as a celebration of the golden hues of the sun and the richness of the earth.
People
Sonjia + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Sonjia as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with S
Other first names starting with S with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Sonjia: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Sonjia?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 826 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Sonjia 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 414,957 US residents.
Is Sonjia a common name?
We classify Sonjia as "Very Rare". It ranks above 88.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,113 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Sonjia most popular?
The single biggest year for Sonjia was 1967, when 55 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Sonjia is about 61 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Sonjia in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 939 people with the name Sonjia, or 0.31 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #13,019 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 Sonjia 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 Sonjia?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Sonjia appears almost entirely female. Of the 942 people counted with this name, 100.0% 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 Sonjia?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Sonjia is White at 49.9%. The next largest groups are Black (34.8%) and Hispanic (9.4%). 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 Sonjia most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Sonjia in the 2020 Census, accounting for 49.9% (469 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 Sonjia in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Sonjia a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Sonjia 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 Sonjia still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Sonjia 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 Sonjia 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 share the name Sonjia?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.