Cythia
A feminine name derived from the Greek mythological name Kythera.
Name Census estimates that about 340 living Americans carry the first name Cythia. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Cythia today is around 55 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Cythia births was 1961 (21 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Cythia. 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
340
~ 1 in 1,008,101 Americans
Peak year
1961
21 babies that year
Average age
55
years old
1994 SSA rank
#12,128
Tracked since 1951
Census
Cythia in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 923 people with the first name Cythia, which placed it at #13,172 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
#13,172
National first-name rank
People counted
923
923 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.3
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
58.6% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Cythia
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Cythia is White at 58.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (21.2%) and Black (13.8%). 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 Cythia 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 Cythia at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White58.6% · 541
- Hispanic or Latino21.2% · 196
- Black or African American13.8% · 127
- Asian and Pacific Islander3.0% · 28
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.8% · 17
- Two or more races1.5% · 14
Popularity
Cythia: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Cythia from the 1950s through to the 1990s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1960s, with 129 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1960s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Cythia 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 Cythia during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Cythias live
Origin
Meaning and history of Cythia
The name Cythia has its origins in ancient Greek culture, deriving from the word "Kythera," which refers to the Greek island of the same name. This island was associated with the goddess Aphrodite, known as the goddess of love, beauty, and pleasure. The name Cythia is thought to be a feminine form of "Kytherios," meaning "of Kythera" or "from Kythera," which was a title given to Aphrodite herself.
In Greek mythology, Cythera was believed to be the birthplace of Aphrodite, who emerged from the sea foam near its shores. As a result, the island held significant importance in ancient Greek culture, with temples and sanctuaries dedicated to the goddess of love. The name Cythia, therefore, carries connotations of beauty, grace, and sensuality, reflecting the qualities associated with the divine Aphrodite.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Cythia can be found in the works of the ancient Greek poet Hesiod, who lived around the 8th century BC. In his epic poem "Theogony," Hesiod refers to Aphrodite as "Cytherea," a variation of the name Cythia, further solidifying the connection between the name and the goddess.
Throughout history, several notable figures have borne the name Cythia, though its usage has been relatively uncommon. One of the earliest recorded individuals with this name was Cythia of Cyrene (fl. 5th century BC), a Greek philosopher and mathematician who studied under the renowned Socrates. Another prominent figure was Cythia of Alexandria (fl. 3rd century AD), a Neoplatonist philosopher and mathematician who made significant contributions to the field of geometry.
In the realm of literature, Cythia was the name given to a character in the pastoral poetry of the ancient Roman poet Virgil. In his work "Eclogues," Virgil portrays Cythia as a beautiful and idealized love interest, further reinforcing the name's association with love and beauty.
During the Renaissance period, Cythia was the name of a character in the works of the Italian poet Ludovico Ariosto (1474-1533). Ariosto's epic poem "Orlando Furioso" features a character named Cythia, who represents the embodiment of divine beauty and grace.
Another notable figure with the name Cythia was Cythia Huntingdon (1701-1791), an English novelist and playwright who was active during the 18th century. Her works, though not widely known today, contributed to the literary landscape of her time.
While the name Cythia has been relatively uncommon throughout history, its rich cultural and mythological origins have imbued it with a sense of beauty, grace, and connection to the divine feminine. As a name deeply rooted in ancient Greek mythology and the worship of Aphrodite, it carries a timeless quality that continues to evoke the ideals of love, sensuality, and aesthetic appreciation.
People
Cythia + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Cythia 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
Cythia: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Cythia?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 340 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Cythia 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 1,008,101 US residents.
Is Cythia a common name?
We classify Cythia as "Very Rare". It ranks above 80.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 401 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Cythia most popular?
The single biggest year for Cythia was 1961, when 21 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Cythia is about 55 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Cythia in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 923 people with the name Cythia, or 0.31 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #13,172 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 Cythia 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 Cythia?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Cythia appears almost entirely female. Of the 917 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 Cythia?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Cythia is White at 58.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (21.2%) and Black (13.8%). 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 Cythia most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Cythia in the 2020 Census, accounting for 58.6% (541 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 Cythia in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Cythia a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Cythia 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 Cythia still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Cythia 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 Cythia 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 Cythia?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.