Doneta
Feminine given name derived from the Latin word "donatus", which means "gift".
Name Census estimates that about 79 living Americans carry the first name Doneta. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Doneta today is around 70 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Doneta births was 1931 (11 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Doneta. 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 Doneta is about 70 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Donetas were born before 1966.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Doneta. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
79
~ 1 in 4,338,663 Americans
Peak year
1931
11 babies that year
Average age
70
years old
1970 SSA rank
#8,316
Tracked since 1928
Census
Doneta in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 174 people with the first name Doneta, which placed it at #41,801 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
#41,801
National first-name rank
People counted
174
174 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
77.0% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Doneta
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Doneta is White at 77.0%. The next largest groups are Black (17.2%) and Two or More Races (2.9%). 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 Doneta 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 Doneta at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White77.0% · 134
- Black or African American17.2% · 30
- Two or more races2.9% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.7% · 3
- Hispanic or Latino1.1% · 2
Popularity
Doneta: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Doneta from the 1920s through to the 1970s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1950s, with 54 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1950s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Doneta 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 Doneta 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 Doneta
The given name Doneta is a feminine name with origins tracing back to the medieval era. It is believed to have originated from the Latin word "donatus" which means "given" or "granted". This name is particularly prevalent in regions with strong Latin linguistic influences, such as Italy, Spain, and parts of France.
During the Middle Ages, the name Doneta was commonly used in Catholic communities, often given to children as a symbolic gesture of gratitude to God for the gift of a child. It was also associated with the concept of divine grace and blessings bestowed upon the bearer.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Doneta can be found in historical records from the 12th century. A notable figure bearing this name was Doneta of Saxony, a German noblewoman who lived in the late 12th century and was known for her philanthropic efforts and patronage of the arts.
In the 14th century, Doneta de Vaurilla, a French nun and abbess, gained recognition for her writings on spiritual matters and her leadership within the religious community. Her name was widely revered during her lifetime and for generations after her passing.
Another historical figure of note was Doneta Visconti, an Italian noblewoman from the powerful Visconti family of Milan. Born in the late 15th century, she played a significant role in the political affairs of her time and was renowned for her diplomatic skills.
In the realm of literature, the name Doneta was immortalized in the epic poem "La Divina Commedia" by the Italian poet Dante Alighieri. One of the characters in the work, a woman named Doneta, is portrayed as a symbol of virtue and grace.
During the Renaissance period, Doneta Borghese, an Italian artist and patron of the arts, made significant contributions to the artistic and cultural landscape of the time. Her name was widely celebrated among the artistic circles of the 16th century.
While the name Doneta has seen a decline in popularity in modern times, its historical significance and rich cultural associations have solidified its place in the annals of history, particularly in regions with strong Latin and Catholic influences.
People
Doneta + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Doneta 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
Doneta: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Doneta?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 79 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Doneta 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 4,338,663 US residents.
Is Doneta a common name?
We classify Doneta as "Very Rare". It ranks above 61.1% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 144 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Doneta most popular?
The single biggest year for Doneta was 1931, when 11 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Doneta is about 70 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Doneta in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 174 people with the name Doneta, or 0.06 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #41,801 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 Doneta 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 Doneta?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Doneta leans strongly female. 176 people counted with this name were female (98.3%), compared with 3 male bearers (1.7%). 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 Doneta?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Doneta is White at 77.0%. The next largest groups are Black (17.2%) and Two or More Races (2.9%). 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 Doneta most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Doneta in the 2020 Census, accounting for 77.0% (134 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 Doneta in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Doneta a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Doneta 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 Doneta still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Doneta 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 Doneta 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 share the name Doneta?
Find out how many people have the name Doneta on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.