Esta
A feminine name of Spanish origin meaning "that" or "these".
Name Census estimates that about 867 living Americans carry the first name Esta. It is a predominantly female name (99.4% of registrations). The average person named Esta today is around 67 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Esta births was 1920 (117 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Esta. 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.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Esta with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • The typical person named Esta is about 67 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Estas were born before 1969.
People living today
867
~ 1 in 395,334 Americans
Peak year
1920
117 babies that year
Average age
67
years old
1926 SSA rank
#3,856
Tracked since 1880
Census
Esta in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 1,358 people with the first name Esta, which placed it at #9,982 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
#9,982
National first-name rank
People counted
1.4K
1,358 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.4
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
81.9% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Esta
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Esta is White at 81.9%. The next largest groups are Black (10.8%) and Hispanic (3.0%). 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 Esta 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 Esta at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White81.9% · 1,112
- Black or African American10.8% · 146
- Hispanic or Latino3.0% · 41
- Two or more races2.0% · 27
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.8% · 24
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 8
Gender
Gender distribution for Esta
Out of the 4,457 babies given the name Esta since 1880, 99.4% were registered as female. The name sits firmly on the female side of the spectrum, with only a handful of male registrations across the entire dataset.
Esta as a male name
- Ranked #3,856 in 1926
- 6 male births in 1926
- Peak: 1916 (6 births)
Esta as a female name
- Ranked #11,379 in 2024
- 8 female births in 2024
- Peak: 1920 (117 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Esta leans strongly female. 1,333 people counted with this name were female (98.4%), compared with 21 male bearers (1.6%).
Popularity
Esta: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Esta from the 1880s through to the 2020s, spanning 15 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 883 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1920s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Esta 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 Esta during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Estas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 18 states and territories. New York, Texas, West Virginia recorded the most babies named Esta, while Mississippi, Massachusetts, Alabama recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 79 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Esta
Esta is a feminine given name with roots in various cultures and languages around the world. Its origins can be traced back to the Latin word "aestas," meaning "summer." In Spanish and Portuguese, "esta" translates to "this" or "this one," suggesting a sense of presence or immediacy.
The name Esta has been recorded in historical documents and literature throughout different eras. In ancient Roman texts, it was occasionally used as a shortened version of female names like Estella or Estelle. During the Middle Ages, the name appeared sporadically in various European regions, although its popularity remained relatively low.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Esta can be found in the 13th-century genealogical records of the House of Plantagenet, a royal dynasty that ruled England from 1154 to 1485. Esta de Longchamp (c. 1240 - c. 1300) was a noblewoman who served as a lady-in-waiting to Queen Eleanor of Castile.
In the 16th century, the name gained some prominence in Italy, where Esta Trotti (1497 - 1567) was a renowned Renaissance poet and member of the prestigious Accademia dei Pastori in Mantua. Her works explored themes of love, nature, and the human condition.
During the 18th century, Esta Brite (1718 - 1792) was a notable figure in colonial America. She was a Quaker preacher and activist who advocated for the abolition of slavery and the fair treatment of Native Americans.
In the 19th century, Esta Loche (1822 - 1898) was a French painter and illustrator known for her vibrant depictions of rural life and landscapes. Her works were exhibited at the prestigious Paris Salon and gained recognition among her contemporaries.
Another notable figure was Esta Brooks (1879 - 1957), an American writer and journalist who documented the experiences of women during World War I. Her memoir, "Stretcher-Bearers at the Front," provided a unique perspective on the challenges faced by female volunteers on the battlefields of Europe.
These are just a few examples of individuals throughout history who have borne the name Esta. While its usage has remained relatively uncommon, the name has persisted across various cultures and time periods, carrying with it a sense of warmth, vibrancy, and presence.
People
Esta + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Esta 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
Esta: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Esta?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 867 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Esta 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 395,334 US residents.
Is Esta a common name?
We classify Esta as "Very Rare". It ranks above 89.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 4,457 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Esta most popular?
The single biggest year for Esta was 1920, when 117 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Esta is about 67 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Esta in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 1,358 people with the name Esta, or 0.45 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #9,982 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 Esta 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 Esta?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Esta leans strongly female. 1,333 people counted with this name were female (98.4%), compared with 21 male bearers (1.6%). 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 Esta?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Esta is White at 81.9%. The next largest groups are Black (10.8%) and Hispanic (3.0%). 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 Esta most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Esta in the 2020 Census, accounting for 81.9% (1,112 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 Esta in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Esta a female name?
Yes, 99.4% of people registered as Esta 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 Esta still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Esta 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 Esta 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 are called Esta?
You can see how many Americans are named Esta on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.