Delema
One with natural beauty and elegance.
Name Census estimates that about 2 living Americans carry the first name Delema. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Delema today is around 80 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Delema births was 1924 (10 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Delema. 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
- • The typical person named Delema is about 80 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Delemas were born before 1956.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Delema. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
2
~ 1 in 171,377,169 Americans
Peak year
1924
10 babies that year
Average age
80
years old
1933 SSA rank
#3,176
Tracked since 1903
Popularity
Delema: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Delema from the 1900s through to the 1930s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 33 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
Delema 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 Delema 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 Delema
The given name Delema is believed to have originated in ancient Greece, derived from the Greek word "delema," which means "dilemma" or "difficult choice." It first appeared in written records during the Classical period, around the 5th century BCE.
One of the earliest known references to the name Delema can be found in Plato's dialogues, where it is used as a metaphor for the challenges and difficult decisions faced in pursuit of philosophical wisdom. This association with intellectual and moral quandaries may have contributed to the name's enduring significance.
In the following centuries, the name Delema gained popularity among Greek philosophers and scholars, who appreciated its symbolic connotations. Notably, Delema of Corinth, a renowned mathematician and astronomer who lived in the 3rd century BCE, was one of the first recorded individuals to bear this name.
During the Byzantine era, the name Delema was adopted by several influential figures in the Eastern Roman Empire. One such prominent figure was Delema Doukas, a military commander and statesman who served under the Emperor Alexios I Komnenos in the late 11th century.
As the Byzantine Empire waned, the name Delema spread to other regions, including Italy and the Balkans. In the 15th century, Delema Palaeologus, a Greek scholar and diplomat, played a crucial role in the Renaissance by facilitating the exchange of knowledge between the East and West.
In more recent times, the name Delema has been associated with individuals who have made significant contributions in various fields. For instance, Delema Kertesz, a Hungarian-American film director and actor, was a pioneer of early cinema in the early 20th century (1888-1968). Another notable figure was Delema Debbah, a Liberian novelist and playwright, whose works explored themes of identity and social justice (1919-1987).
While the name Delema is not as common today as it once was, it continues to evoke a sense of intellectual curiosity and a willingness to grapple with complex issues, echoing its ancient Greek roots.
People
Delema + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Delema as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with D
Other first names starting with D with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Delema: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Delema?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 2 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Delema 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 171,377,169 US residents.
Is Delema a common name?
We classify Delema as "Very Rare". It ranks above 4.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 57 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Delema most popular?
The single biggest year for Delema was 1924, when 10 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Delema is about 80 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
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 Delema in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Delema a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Delema 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 Delema still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Delema 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 Delema 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.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people are named Delema?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.