Donnesha
A feminine name of African-American origin that may derive from "Donna", meaning "lady".
Name Census estimates that about 263 living Americans carry the first name Donnesha. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Donnesha today is around 33 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Donnesha births was 1992 (21 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Donnesha. 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
263
~ 1 in 1,303,248 Americans
Peak year
1992
21 babies that year
Average age
33
years old
2005 SSA rank
#15,015
Tracked since 1976
Census
Donnesha in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 211 people with the first name Donnesha, which placed it at #37,164 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
#37,164
National first-name rank
People counted
211
211 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
97.2% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Donnesha
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Donnesha is Black at 97.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.4%) and White (0.5%). 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 Donnesha 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 Donnesha at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American97.2% · 205
- Two or more races2.4% · 5
- White0.5% · 1
Popularity
Donnesha: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Donnesha from the 1970s through to the 2000s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 140 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1990s peak, Donnesha remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Donnesha 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 Donnesha 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 Donnesha
The name Donnesha has its roots in the ancient Sumerian language, which flourished in the region of Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq) around 3500 BCE. It is derived from the Sumerian words "dun" meaning "strong" and "esha" meaning "life," thus symbolizing a strong and vibrant existence. The name was widely used among the Sumerian people, particularly in the city-states of Ur and Uruk.
Throughout the centuries, the name Donnesha has been mentioned in various ancient texts and historical records. One notable reference can be found in the Epic of Gilgamesh, an epic poem from ancient Mesopotamia, where a character with this name is described as a wise and respected elder in the city of Uruk. Additionally, clay tablets unearthed from archaeological sites in the region have revealed inscriptions bearing the name Donnesha, highlighting its widespread use during the Sumerian civilization.
The earliest recorded examples of individuals with the name Donnesha can be traced back to the 3rd millennium BCE. One of the earliest known figures was Donnesha of Ur, a high priestess who served in the temple of the moon god Nanna around 2500 BCE. Her name was inscribed on a stone tablet discovered in the ruins of the ancient city of Ur.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have carried the name Donnesha. One such figure was Donnesha the Scribe, a renowned Sumerian scholar and writer who lived in the 21st century BCE. His works, preserved on clay tablets, provided invaluable insights into the culture, language, and literature of ancient Sumer.
Another significant figure was Donnesha the Architect, a skilled Sumerian architect who designed and oversaw the construction of several iconic ziggurats (stepped pyramids) and temples in the city-states of Ur and Eridu around 2200 BCE. His architectural masterpieces stood as remarkable achievements of ancient Mesopotamian engineering.
In the 8th century BCE, Donnesha the Astronomer, a renowned Babylonian scholar, made significant contributions to the study of astronomy and the development of the lunar calendar. Her observations and calculations were instrumental in advancing the understanding of celestial bodies and their movements.
Additionally, Donnesha the Healer, a revered Sumerian physician who lived in the 3rd millennium BCE, was renowned for her expertise in the use of medicinal herbs and natural remedies. Her methods and teachings were widely respected and influenced the development of ancient medical practices in the region.
While the name Donnesha has its origins in ancient Mesopotamia, it has undergone various transformations and adaptations over the centuries, reflecting the cultural and linguistic influences of different regions and civilizations. However, its deep-rooted connection to the ancient Sumerian language and the rich history of Mesopotamia remains an integral part of its legacy.
People
Donnesha + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Donnesha 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
Donnesha: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Donnesha?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 263 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Donnesha 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 1,303,248 US residents.
Is Donnesha a common name?
We classify Donnesha as "Very Rare". It ranks above 77.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 273 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Donnesha most popular?
The single biggest year for Donnesha was 1992, when 21 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Donnesha is about 33 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Donnesha in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 211 people with the name Donnesha, or 0.07 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #37,164 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 Donnesha 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 Donnesha?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Donnesha appears almost entirely female. Of the 217 people counted with this name, 99.1% 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 Donnesha?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Donnesha is Black at 97.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.4%) and White (0.5%). 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 Donnesha most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Donnesha in the 2020 Census, accounting for 97.2% (205 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 Donnesha in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Donnesha a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Donnesha 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 Donnesha still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Donnesha 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 Donnesha 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 common is the name Donnesha?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.