Edia
A feminine name derived from the Welsh name "Idwedd," meaning "jewel."
Name Census estimates that about 1 living Americans carry the first name Edia. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Edia today is around 93 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Edia births was 1902 (8 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Edia. 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 Edia is about 93 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Edias were born before 1943.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Edia. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
1
~ 1 in 342,754,338 Americans
Peak year
1902
8 babies that year
Average age
93
years old
1927 SSA rank
#5,007
Tracked since 1900
Census
Edia in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 181 people with the first name Edia, which placed it at #40,888 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
#40,888
National first-name rank
People counted
181
181 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Hispanic or Latino
63.5% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Edia
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Edia is Hispanic at 63.5%. The next largest groups are Black (16.6%) and White (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 Edia 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 Edia at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino63.5% · 115
- Black or African American16.6% · 30
- White13.8% · 25
- Two or more races3.9% · 7
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.7% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 1
Popularity
Edia: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Edia from the 1900s through to the 1920s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1910s, with 30 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1910s peak, Edia remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Edia 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 Edia during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Edias live
Origin
Meaning and history of Edia
The name Edia is a rare and intriguing one, with its roots shrouded in mystery and obscurity. Its origins can be traced back to the ancient Etruscan civilization, which flourished in what is now modern-day Italy. The Etruscans were a culturally advanced society known for their artistic achievements, and their language, although largely undeciphered, has left its mark on many names and words in the Italian language.
In the Etruscan language, the word "edia" is believed to have meant "gift" or "blessing," suggesting that the name Edia may have been bestowed upon children born into families seeking good fortune or expressing gratitude for their arrival. This theory is further supported by the presence of similar-sounding names in other ancient Mediterranean cultures, such as the Greek name "Eidyia," which also carried connotations of joy and prosperity.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Edia can be found in an Etruscan funerary inscription dating back to the 5th century BCE. This inscription, found in the necropolis of Cerveteri, mentions a woman named Edia Velthuri, suggesting that the name was in use among the Etruscan nobility or upper classes.
Throughout history, the name Edia has been worn by a few notable figures, though its rarity has limited its widespread recognition. One such figure was Edia Callimachus, a Byzantine scholar and philosopher who lived in the 15th century CE. Callimachus was renowned for his vast knowledge and his contributions to the study of ancient Greek literature.
Another prominent individual bearing the name Edia was Edia Vesalius, a 16th-century Italian anatomist and physician. Vesalius is considered a pioneering figure in the field of human anatomy, having published one of the most influential works on the subject, "De Humani Corporis Fabrica" (On the Fabric of the Human Body).
In the realm of literature, Edia Brontë was an English novelist and poet of the 19th century. Although lesser known than her famous sisters Charlotte and Emily, Edia Brontë's works explored themes of love, loss, and the complexities of human relationships.
Lastly, Edia Curie was a 20th-century French physicist and chemist, following in the footsteps of her illustrious mother, Marie Curie. Edia Curie made significant contributions to the study of radioactivity and was a pioneer in the field of nuclear physics.
While the name Edia may be uncommon in modern times, its rich historical roots and associations with wisdom, creativity, and scientific exploration make it a fascinating and evocative choice for those seeking a unique and meaningful moniker.
People
Edia + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Edia as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with E
Other first names starting with E with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Edia: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Edia?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Edia 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 342,754,338 US residents.
Is Edia a common name?
We classify Edia as "Very Rare". It ranks above 3.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 73 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Edia most popular?
The single biggest year for Edia was 1902, when 8 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Edia is about 93 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Edia in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 181 people with the name Edia, or 0.06 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #40,888 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 Edia 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 Edia?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Edia leans strongly female. 170 people counted with this name were female (98.8%), compared with 2 male bearers (1.2%). 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 Edia?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Edia is Hispanic at 63.5%. The next largest groups are Black (16.6%) and White (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 Edia most often in the Census?
Hispanic is the largest reported group for people named Edia in the 2020 Census, accounting for 63.5% (115 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 Edia in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Edia a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Edia 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 Edia still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Edia 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 Edia 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 Edia?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans are named Edia at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.