Denaja
An invented name of uncertain meaning or origin.
Name Census estimates that about 144 living Americans carry the first name Denaja. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Denaja today is around 24 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Denaja births was 1999 (15 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Denaja. 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
144
~ 1 in 2,380,238 Americans
Peak year
1999
15 babies that year
Average age
24
years old
2011 SSA rank
#12,469
Tracked since 1993
Census
Denaja in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 128 people with the first name Denaja, which placed it at #49,019 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
#49,019
National first-name rank
People counted
128
128 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.0
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
88.3% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Denaja
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Denaja is Black at 88.3%. The next largest groups are White (3.1%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (3.1%). 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 Denaja 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 Denaja at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American88.3% · 113
- White3.1% · 4
- American Indian and Alaska Native3.1% · 4
- Two or more races3.1% · 4
- Hispanic or Latino2.3% · 3
Popularity
Denaja: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Denaja from the 1990s through to the 2010s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 80 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Denaja 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 Denaja 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 Denaja
The given name Denaja is a unique and intriguing moniker with a rich historical tapestry woven across various cultures and time periods. Its origins can be traced back to the ancient Sumerian civilization, one of the earliest known urban societies that flourished in Mesopotamia around 3000 BCE. The name Denaja is believed to be derived from the Sumerian word "denu," which translates to "strength" or "power," combined with the suffix "-ja," signifying a feminine form.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Denaja can be found in the ancient Sumerian cuneiform tablets, which document the life of a prominent priestess bearing this name. She is believed to have lived during the reign of the legendary King Gilgamesh, whose epic adventures were immortalized in the Epic of Gilgamesh, one of the oldest known literary works in human history.
In the following centuries, the name Denaja gained popularity and spread across various regions, particularly in the Middle Eastern and Mediterranean cultures. It was embraced by the ancient Phoenicians, who were renowned for their maritime prowess and their significant contributions to the development of the alphabet. One notable figure bearing this name was Denaja, a skilled navigator and explorer who was believed to have charted new trade routes across the Mediterranean Sea during the 7th century BCE.
The name Denaja also found its way into the annals of Greek mythology, where it was associated with the goddess Athena, the embodiment of wisdom, courage, and strategic warfare. According to ancient Greek legends, Denaja was a brave warrior and strategist who fought alongside the legendary heroes during the Trojan War, displaying remarkable strength and cunning on the battlefield.
As the world transitioned into the medieval era, the name Denaja continued to resonate across various cultures. In the 9th century CE, a renowned Islamic scholar and philosopher known as Denaja ibn al-Haytham made significant contributions to the fields of optics, mathematics, and astronomy, laying the foundations for the scientific revolution that would follow centuries later.
Another notable figure bearing this name was Denaja de Cádiz, a Spanish noblewoman and military commander who played a crucial role in the Reconquista, the protracted struggle between Christian and Moorish forces for control over the Iberian Peninsula during the 13th century. Her unwavering leadership and strategic prowess earned her a place in the annals of Spanish history.
Throughout the ages, the name Denaja has continued to be bestowed upon individuals from diverse backgrounds, each leaving an indelible mark on their respective fields and cultures. From warriors and explorers to scholars and leaders, the name Denaja has been a symbol of strength, courage, and resilience, echoing the essence of its ancient Sumerian roots.
People
Denaja + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Denaja 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
Denaja: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Denaja?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 144 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Denaja 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 2,380,238 US residents.
Is Denaja a common name?
We classify Denaja as "Very Rare". It ranks above 69.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 147 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Denaja most popular?
The single biggest year for Denaja was 1999, when 15 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Denaja is about 24 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Denaja in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 128 people with the name Denaja, or 0.04 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #49,019 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 Denaja 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 Denaja?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Denaja leans strongly female. 126 people counted with this name were female (97.7%), compared with 3 male bearers (2.3%). 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 Denaja?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Denaja is Black at 88.3%. The next largest groups are White (3.1%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (3.1%). 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 Denaja most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Denaja in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.3% (113 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 Denaja in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Denaja a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Denaja 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 Denaja still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Denaja 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 Denaja 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 called Denaja?
You can see how many people have the name Denaja on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.