Toya
A feminine Japanese name meaning "effervescent" or "sparkling gem".
Name Census estimates that about 3,532 living Americans carry the first name Toya. It is a predominantly female name (99.4% of registrations). The average person named Toya today is around 50 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Toya births was 1976 (232 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Toya. 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 Toya with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
3.5K
~ 1 in 97,043 Americans
Peak year
1976
232 babies that year
Average age
50
years old
1976 SSA rank
#6,438
Tracked since 1932
Census
Toya in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 3,997 people with the first name Toya, which placed it at #4,601 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
#4,601
National first-name rank
People counted
4.0K
3,997 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
1.3
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
82.9% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Toya
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Toya is Black at 82.9%. The next largest groups are White (8.5%) and Two or More Races (3.3%). 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 Toya 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 Toya at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American82.9% · 3,315
- White8.5% · 340
- Two or more races3.3% · 132
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 112
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.8% · 70
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 28
Gender
Gender distribution for Toya
Out of the 3,992 babies given the name Toya since 1880, 99.4% 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.
Toya as a male name
- Ranked #6,438 in 1976
- 5 male births in 1976
- Peak: 1974 (7 births)
Toya as a female name
- Ranked #15,526 in 2018
- 6 female births in 2018
- Peak: 1976 (227 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Toya leans strongly female. 3,904 people counted with this name were female (97.6%), compared with 94 male bearers (2.4%).
Popularity
Toya: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Toya from the 1930s through to the 2010s, spanning 9 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1970s, with 1,835 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1970s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Toya 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 Toya during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Toyas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 23 states and territories. Illinois, Michigan, New York recorded the most babies named Toya, while Arkansas, South Carolina, Missouri recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 107 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Toya
The name Toya has its origins in Japanese culture, where it holds deep linguistic and historical significance. Derived from the Japanese word "toyo," meaning abundant or bountiful, this moniker has graced individuals across various eras and walks of life.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Toya can be found in the ancient Japanese text, the Kojiki, which dates back to the 8th century. In this chronicle of myths and legends, Toya was the name of a revered goddess associated with fertility and prosperity.
Throughout Japan's rich history, the name Toya has been bestowed upon numerous notable figures. One such individual was Toya Shigeyuki (1176-1243), a renowned samurai and military strategist who played a pivotal role in the Genpei War, a formative conflict that shaped the political landscape of medieval Japan.
In the realm of arts and culture, Toya Tsunekazu (1860-1934) left an indelible mark as a celebrated poet and literary figure. His works, deeply rooted in traditional Japanese aesthetics, continue to inspire writers and artists alike.
Crossing the Pacific, the name Toya also found its way into the annals of Native American history. Toya Inarra (c. 1700-1770) was a revered chief and peacemaker among the Iroquois people, renowned for her diplomacy and efforts to promote unity among the tribes.
Another notable figure bearing the name Toya was Toya Delazy (1988-), a South African singer and songwriter whose unique blend of electro-pop and African rhythms has captivated audiences worldwide. Her music reflects the rich tapestry of cultures that have shaped her homeland.
While the name Toya has traversed continents and cultures, its essence remains rooted in the Japanese tradition of celebrating abundance and prosperity. This name serves as a testament to the enduring influence of language and history on the names we bestow upon our children.
People
Toya + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Toya as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with T
Other first names starting with T with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Toya: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Toya?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 3,532 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Toya 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 97,043 US residents.
Is Toya a common name?
We classify Toya as "Rare". It ranks above 95.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 3,992 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Toya most popular?
The single biggest year for Toya was 1976, when 232 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Toya is about 50 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Toya in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 3,997 people with the name Toya, or 1.32 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #4,601 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 Toya 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 Toya?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Toya leans strongly female. 3,904 people counted with this name were female (97.6%), compared with 94 male bearers (2.4%). 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 Toya?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Toya is Black at 82.9%. The next largest groups are White (8.5%) and Two or More Races (3.3%). 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 Toya most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Toya in the 2020 Census, accounting for 82.9% (3,315 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 Toya in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Toya a female name?
Yes, 99.4% of people registered as Toya 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 Toya still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Toya 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 Toya 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 the name Toya?
If you just want to know how many Americans are named Toya, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.