Contina
A feminine name derived from Latin, meaning "chaste, unwavering, or pure".
Name Census estimates that about 434 living Americans carry the first name Contina. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Contina today is around 52 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Contina births was 1972 (209 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Contina. 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
434
~ 1 in 789,757 Americans
Peak year
1972
209 babies that year
Average age
52
years old
1985 SSA rank
#9,543
Tracked since 1970
Census
Contina in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 352 people with the first name Contina, which placed it at #26,438 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
#26,438
National first-name rank
People counted
352
352 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
83.2% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Contina
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Contina is Black at 83.2%. The next largest groups are White (12.2%) and Two or More Races (3.7%). 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 Contina 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 Contina at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American83.2% · 293
- White12.2% · 43
- Two or more races3.7% · 13
- Hispanic or Latino0.6% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 1
Popularity
Contina: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Contina from the 1970s through to the 1980s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1970s, with 455 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
Contina 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 Contina during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Continas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 14 states and territories. North Carolina, Mississippi, Louisiana recorded the most babies named Contina, while Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 21 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Contina
The name Contina has its origins in the ancient Etruscan culture that flourished in what is now modern-day Italy. It likely stems from the Etruscan word "contina," which means "beautiful." The Etruscans were a sophisticated civilization known for their advanced understanding of art, architecture, and engineering.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Contina can be found in the famous Etruscan text, the "Liber Linteus," a linen book dating back to the 6th century BC. This ancient text contained religious writings and rituals, suggesting that the name may have held spiritual significance within the Etruscan culture.
During the Roman Empire, the name Contina was adopted by some Roman families, particularly those with Etruscan roots or influences. One notable figure was Contina Maxima, a Roman noblewoman who lived in the 2nd century AD and was known for her philanthropic efforts and patronage of the arts.
In the Middle Ages, the name Contina remained relatively obscure but resurfaced in certain regions of Italy, such as Tuscany, where Etruscan heritage was still celebrated. One example is Contina Della Torre, a 13th-century Italian poet and scholar from Florence.
In the Renaissance era, the name gained popularity among the aristocratic classes in Italy. A prominent figure was Contina Sforza, a 15th-century Italian noblewoman and patron of the arts, who played a significant role in the cultural renaissance of Milan.
Another notable figure was Contina Veronica, a 16th-century Italian painter and engraver from Venice, renowned for her intricate religious paintings and etchings.
As the name spread across Europe, it took on various spellings and forms, such as Contina, Contyna, and Contine. However, the original Etruscan roots and meaning remained intact, reflecting the enduring influence of this ancient civilization on Western culture.
People
Contina + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Contina 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
Contina: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Contina?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 434 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Contina 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 789,757 US residents.
Is Contina a common name?
We classify Contina as "Very Rare". It ranks above 83.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 484 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Contina most popular?
The single biggest year for Contina was 1972, when 209 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Contina is about 52 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Contina in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 352 people with the name Contina, or 0.12 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #26,438 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 Contina 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 Contina?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Contina appears almost entirely female. Of the 351 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 Contina?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Contina is Black at 83.2%. The next largest groups are White (12.2%) and Two or More Races (3.7%). 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 Contina most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Contina in the 2020 Census, accounting for 83.2% (293 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 Contina in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Contina a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Contina 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 Contina still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Contina 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 Contina 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 Contina?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.