Wanita
Of Indian origin, meaning a woman or female.
Name Census estimates that about 1,083 living Americans carry the first name Wanita. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Wanita today is around 60 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Wanita births was 1924 (71 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Wanita. 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
1.1K
~ 1 in 316,486 Americans
Peak year
1924
71 babies that year
Average age
60
years old
2024 SSA rank
#17,489
Tracked since 1899
Census
Wanita in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 1,519 people with the first name Wanita, which placed it at #9,241 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
#9,241
National first-name rank
People counted
1.5K
1,519 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.5
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
72.9% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Wanita
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Wanita is White at 72.9%. The next largest groups are Black (14.4%) and Hispanic (4.4%). 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 Wanita 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 Wanita at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White72.9% · 1,108
- Black or African American14.4% · 219
- Hispanic or Latino4.4% · 67
- Two or more races3.4% · 52
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.4% · 37
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.4% · 36
Popularity
Wanita: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Wanita from the 1890s through to the 2020s, spanning 14 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 506 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
Wanita 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 Wanita during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Wanitas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 11 states and territories. Indiana, Illinois, Missouri recorded the most babies named Wanita, while New York, Kentucky, Kansas recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 36 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Wanita
The name Wanita originates from the Malay language, which is spoken in Malaysia, Indonesia, and other parts of Southeast Asia. It is derived from the word "wanita," which translates to "woman" or "female" in English.
In Malay culture, the name Wanita is typically given to girls as a way to honor and celebrate their femininity. It is a name that carries a sense of pride and strength, reminding its bearer of the important role that women play in society.
The earliest recorded use of the name Wanita dates back to the 16th century, when it appeared in various Malay literary works and historical records. During this time, the Malay Archipelago was a thriving hub of trade and cultural exchange, and the name Wanita likely gained popularity as a result of this cross-cultural interaction.
One of the earliest notable figures to bear the name Wanita was Wanita Utama, a 17th-century Malay princess and daughter of the Sultan of Johor. She was known for her intelligence, beauty, and leadership skills, and is remembered as a prominent figure in the history of the Malay Sultanate.
Another important historical figure named Wanita was Wanita Kahar, a 19th-century Malay warrior and leader who played a significant role in the resistance against Dutch colonial rule in the East Indies. She is celebrated as a symbol of courage and defiance in the face of oppression.
In the realm of literature, Wanita Harahap was a renowned Indonesian author and poet of the 20th century. Born in 1924, she was a prominent voice in the Indonesian literary scene and is remembered for her evocative and thought-provoking works that explored themes of love, identity, and social issues.
More recently, Wanita Tan was a Malaysian actress and singer who rose to prominence in the 1960s and 1970s. Born in 1945, she was widely considered one of the most talented and versatile performers of her time, and her contributions to the entertainment industry in Malaysia and Singapore remain highly celebrated.
Wanita Subadra Abeygunawardena was a Sri Lankan educator and social activist who dedicated her life to promoting women's rights and education. Born in 1910, she played a pivotal role in establishing several schools and organizations aimed at empowering women and advocating for gender equality.
These are just a few examples of notable individuals throughout history who have borne the name Wanita, each leaving their mark in their respective fields and contributing to the rich cultural tapestry of the regions where the name originated and beyond.
People
Wanita + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Wanita as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with W
Other first names starting with W with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Wanita: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Wanita?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,083 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Wanita 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 316,486 US residents.
Is Wanita a common name?
We classify Wanita as "Rare". It ranks above 90.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 2,533 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Wanita most popular?
The single biggest year for Wanita was 1924, when 71 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Wanita is about 60 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Wanita in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 1,519 people with the name Wanita, or 0.50 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #9,241 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 Wanita 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 Wanita?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Wanita appears almost entirely female. Of the 1,523 people counted with this name, 99.7% 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 Wanita?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Wanita is White at 72.9%. The next largest groups are Black (14.4%) and Hispanic (4.4%). 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 Wanita most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Wanita in the 2020 Census, accounting for 72.9% (1,108 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 Wanita in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Wanita a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Wanita 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 Wanita still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Wanita 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 Wanita 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 Wanita?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.