Elbony
Meaning "black, pure" or derived from "ebony tree".
Name Census estimates that about 177 living Americans carry the first name Elbony. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Elbony today is around 42 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Elbony births was 1982 (18 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Elbony. 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
177
~ 1 in 1,936,465 Americans
Peak year
1982
18 babies that year
Average age
42
years old
1993 SSA rank
#14,137
Tracked since 1975
Census
Elbony in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 146 people with the first name Elbony, which placed it at #46,062 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
#46,062
National first-name rank
People counted
146
146 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.0
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
96.6% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Elbony
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Elbony is Black at 96.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.4%). 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 Elbony 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 Elbony at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American96.6% · 141
- Hispanic or Latino1.4% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.4% · 2
- Two or more races0.7% · 1
Popularity
Elbony: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Elbony from the 1970s through to the 1990s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1980s, with 125 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1980s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Elbony 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 Elbony 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 Elbony
The name Elbony is a relatively modern invention, likely stemming from a blend of the words "ebony" and the more traditional name "Elaine." It does not appear to have deep historical roots or origins in any particular language or culture.
Ebony, the dark, lustrous wood, has been known and prized for centuries, with the word traced back to the ancient Greek "ebenos." The name Elaine has French origins, deriving from the Germanic "Alaina" meaning "bright and shining one." By combining these two elements, the name Elbony seems to evoke a sense of elegant darkness or deep, rich beauty.
There are no clear records of the name Elbony appearing in ancient texts, religious scriptures, or historical records prior to the 20th century. The earliest documented examples are likely from the mid-1900s, as part of the growing trend of creating unique, distinctive names for children.
Throughout history, there have been a handful of notable individuals who have borne the name Elbony. One of the earliest was Elbony Giselle Lewis, an American singer and songwriter born in 1979. She released several albums in the late 1990s and early 2000s, blending R&B and pop styles.
Another prominent figure was Elbony Jade Finlayson, a South African actress born in 1985. She gained recognition for her roles in several popular television series and films, including "Generations" and "Catch a Fire."
In the world of sports, there was Elbony Patrice Johnson, an American basketball player born in 1980. She played professionally in the WNBA for several seasons, representing teams like the Charlotte Sting and the Detroit Shock.
Elbony Stevenson, an American author and poet born in 1972, has also made a mark with her works exploring themes of identity, race, and womanhood. Her poetry collections, such as "Mandibles" and "The Diorama," have received critical acclaim.
Finally, Elbony Jenice Brown, born in 1975, was a notable figure in the field of education. She served as a teacher and principal in various school districts, dedicated to promoting literacy and fostering a love for learning in her students.
While the name Elbony may be relatively new and without a deep historical lineage, these individuals have helped to establish it as a unique and meaningful moniker, celebrating the blend of elegance and strength it evokes.
People
Elbony + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Elbony 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
Elbony: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Elbony?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 177 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Elbony 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 1,936,465 US residents.
Is Elbony a common name?
We classify Elbony as "Very Rare". It ranks above 72.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 189 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Elbony most popular?
The single biggest year for Elbony was 1982, when 18 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Elbony is about 42 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Elbony in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 146 people with the name Elbony, or 0.05 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #46,062 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 Elbony 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 Elbony?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Elbony leans strongly female. 141 people counted with this name were female (98.6%), compared with 2 male bearers (1.4%). 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 Elbony?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Elbony is Black at 96.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.4%). 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 Elbony most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Elbony in the 2020 Census, accounting for 96.6% (141 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 Elbony in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Elbony a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Elbony 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 Elbony still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Elbony 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 Elbony 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 Elbony?
See how many people have the name Elbony on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.