Cinque
Of Italian origin, meaning simply "five".
Name Census estimates that about 328 living Americans carry the first name Cinque. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Cinque today is around 32 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Cinque births was 1998 (27 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Cinque. 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
328
~ 1 in 1,044,983 Americans
Peak year
1998
27 babies that year
Average age
32
years old
2022 SSA rank
#10,022
Tracked since 1969
Popularity
Cinque: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Cinque from the 1960s through to the 2020s, spanning 7 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 111 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
Cinque 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 Cinque during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Cinques live
Origin
Meaning and history of Cinque
The given name Cinque has its origins in the Italian language. It is derived from the Italian word "cinque," which means "five" in English. The name is believed to have originated in Italy during the medieval period.
Cinque is thought to have been used as a nickname or given name for children born as the fifth child in a family. In Italian culture, numerical names were sometimes given to children to signify their birth order within the family.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Cinque can be found in the writings of the Italian poet Dante Alighieri, who lived from 1265 to 1321. In his literary work, Dante mentions a character named Cinque di Terzino, suggesting that the name was in use during that time period.
The name gained further prominence in the 16th century when it was associated with a famous African-born slave named Cinque. Cinque was one of the leaders of the Amistad rebellion in 1839, where a group of captive Africans seized control of the Spanish slave ship Amistad. His courage and determination in fighting for freedom made him a celebrated figure in the abolitionist movement.
Another notable figure with the name Cinque was Cinque Hayford (1855-1919), a Ghanaian writer and educator who played a significant role in promoting education and cultural preservation in West Africa.
In the literary world, Cinque also appears as the name of a character in the novel "Roots" by Alex Haley, published in 1976. This character was based on Cinque, the leader of the Amistad rebellion.
Other historical figures with the name Cinque include Cinque Terre (1270-1349), an Italian explorer and navigator, and Cinque Campi (1492-1567), an Italian painter and sculptor during the Renaissance period.
While the name Cinque is not as common as many other Italian names, it has maintained a presence throughout history, often associated with individuals who have left a lasting impact in various fields, from literature and art to social movements and exploration.
People
Cinque + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Cinque as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with C
Other first names starting with C with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Cinque: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Cinque?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 328 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Cinque 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 1,044,983 US residents.
Is Cinque a common name?
We classify Cinque as "Very Rare". It ranks above 80.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 339 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Cinque most popular?
The single biggest year for Cinque was 1998, when 27 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Cinque is about 32 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Cinque a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Cinque in the SSA data are male. 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.
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.