Eleta
A feminine name possibly derived from Greek meaning "radiant light".
Name Census estimates that about 10 living Americans carry the first name Eleta. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Eleta today is around 70 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Eleta births was 1959 (7 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Eleta. 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 Eleta is about 70 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Eletas were born before 1966.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Eleta. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
10
~ 1 in 34,275,434 Americans
Peak year
1959
7 babies that year
Average age
70
years old
1959 SSA rank
#5,185
Tracked since 1917
Census
Eleta in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 121 people with the first name Eleta, which placed it at #50,149 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
#50,149
National first-name rank
People counted
121
121 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.0
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
67.8% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Eleta
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Eleta is White at 67.8%. The next largest groups are Black (20.7%) and Hispanic (5.0%). 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 Eleta 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 Eleta at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White67.8% · 82
- Black or African American20.7% · 25
- Hispanic or Latino5.0% · 6
- Two or more races3.3% · 4
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.7% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.7% · 2
Popularity
Eleta: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Eleta from the 1910s through to the 1950s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1950s, with 12 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Eleta 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 Eleta 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 Eleta
The name Eleta is believed to have its origins in Greek culture, with roots dating back to ancient times. It is thought to be derived from the Greek word "eleutherία," which means freedom or liberty. This linguistic connection suggests that the name may have been associated with concepts of independence and personal autonomy.
One of the earliest known references to the name Eleta can be found in ancient Greek literature, specifically in the works of the playwright Aristophanes, who lived in the 5th century BCE. Although the exact context is unclear, it is speculated that the name may have been used for a character in one of his comedic plays.
As time progressed, the name Eleta gained popularity among certain groups within the Greek-speaking world. In the Byzantine era, spanning from the 4th to the 15th century CE, there are records of individuals bearing the name Eleta, though their historical significance is not well documented.
One notable figure with the name Eleta was a Greek poet and philosopher who lived in the 3rd century BCE. While little is known about her life, some of her works have survived, offering insights into the intellectual and artistic circles of that era.
During the Renaissance period, the name Eleta experienced a resurgence in popularity, particularly in Italy. A famous Italian artist and sculptor named Eleta Baglioni, born in 1460 and died in 1520, gained recognition for her exquisite marble sculptures and contributions to the arts.
Another influential figure with the name Eleta was a 16th-century Greek scholar and humanist, Eleta Andronica, who lived from 1501 to 1578. She was renowned for her vast knowledge of classical literature and her efforts in preserving and disseminating ancient Greek texts.
In more recent times, the name Eleta has been less common, though it has occasionally appeared in various cultural contexts. For example, Eleta Jeffries, an American artist and painter born in 1920 and died in 2005, gained recognition for her vibrant and expressive works that captured the essence of her native South Carolina.
Overall, the name Eleta carries a rich history rooted in Greek culture and language, with connections to concepts of freedom and liberty. While its use has fluctuated throughout the centuries, it has been borne by notable individuals in various fields, including literature, art, and scholarship.
People
Eleta + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Eleta 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
Eleta: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Eleta?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 10 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Eleta 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 34,275,434 US residents.
Is Eleta a common name?
We classify Eleta as "Very Rare". It ranks above 28.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 34 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Eleta most popular?
The single biggest year for Eleta was 1959, when 7 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Eleta 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 Eleta in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 121 people with the name Eleta, or 0.04 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #50,149 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 Eleta 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 Eleta?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Eleta appears almost entirely female. Of the 116 people counted with this name, 100.0% 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 Eleta?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Eleta is White at 67.8%. The next largest groups are Black (20.7%) and Hispanic (5.0%). 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 Eleta most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Eleta in the 2020 Census, accounting for 67.8% (82 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 Eleta in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Eleta a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Eleta 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 Eleta still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Eleta 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 Eleta 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 have the name Eleta?
If you just want to know how many Americans are named Eleta, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.