Ashaunte
A feminine name of African American origin meaning "beautiful blossom".
Name Census estimates that about 88 living Americans carry the first name Ashaunte. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Ashaunte today is around 30 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Ashaunte births was 2002 (14 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Ashaunte. 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
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Ashaunte. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
88
~ 1 in 3,894,936 Americans
Peak year
2002
14 babies that year
Average age
30
years old
2004 SSA rank
#16,401
Tracked since 1989
Census
Ashaunte in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 127 people with the first name Ashaunte, which placed it at #49,170 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
#49,170
National first-name rank
People counted
127
127 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.0
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
83.5% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Ashaunte
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Ashaunte is Black at 83.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.3%) and White (3.9%). 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 Ashaunte 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 Ashaunte at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American83.5% · 106
- Hispanic or Latino6.3% · 8
- White3.9% · 5
- Two or more races3.9% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.4% · 3
Popularity
Ashaunte: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Ashaunte from the 1980s through to the 2000s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 67 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
Ashaunte 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 Ashaunte during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Ashaunte
The name Ashaunte originates from the Yoruba language, spoken by the Yoruba people of West Africa, primarily in present-day Nigeria. The name can be traced back to the 15th century and is derived from the Yoruba word "ashaunti," which means "walker" or "traveler."
In the 16th century, the name Ashaunte was mentioned in historical records of the Oyo Empire, a prominent Yoruba kingdom in present-day Nigeria. It was often given to children born during times of migration or to those who were expected to travel frequently.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Ashaunte was a renowned Yoruba explorer and trader who lived in the late 16th century. Unfortunately, his exact dates of birth and death are unknown, but he is said to have traveled extensively across West Africa, establishing trade routes and fostering cultural exchange.
In the 18th century, Ashaunte Ibadan, a Yoruba warrior and military strategist, played a significant role in the expansion of the Oyo Empire. He was born around 1720 and died in 1789, leaving a lasting legacy as a skilled tactician and leader.
During the 19th century, Ashaunte Abiola, a Yoruba scholar and educator, was instrumental in preserving and promoting Yoruba culture and language. He lived from 1825 to 1892 and authored several books on Yoruba traditions and literature.
In the early 20th century, Ashaunte Oluwole, a Yoruba activist and feminist, was a prominent figure in the fight for women's rights in Nigeria. She was born in 1905 and dedicated her life to advocating for gender equality and empowering women through education and political participation.
Another notable figure was Ashaunte Adekunle, a Yoruba musician and composer who lived from 1920 to 1998. He played a significant role in popularizing traditional Yoruba music and incorporating it into contemporary Nigerian music genres.
While the name Ashaunte has its roots in the Yoruba culture, it has gained popularity globally and is now used across various cultures and ethnicities, carrying with it the essence of a journey, exploration, and the spirit of adventure.
People
Ashaunte + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Ashaunte as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with A
Other first names starting with A with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Ashaunte: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Ashaunte?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 88 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Ashaunte 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 3,894,936 US residents.
Is Ashaunte a common name?
We classify Ashaunte as "Very Rare". It ranks above 62.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 91 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Ashaunte most popular?
The single biggest year for Ashaunte was 2002, when 14 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Ashaunte is about 30 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Ashaunte in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 127 people with the name Ashaunte, or 0.04 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #49,170 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 Ashaunte 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 Ashaunte?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Ashaunte leans strongly female. 109 people counted with this name were female (92.4%), compared with 9 male bearers (7.6%). 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 Ashaunte?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Ashaunte is Black at 83.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.3%) and White (3.9%). 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 Ashaunte most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Ashaunte in the 2020 Census, accounting for 83.5% (106 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 Ashaunte in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Ashaunte a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Ashaunte 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 Ashaunte still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Ashaunte 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 Ashaunte 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 Ashaunte?
See how many Americans are named Ashaunte on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.