Genella
A feminine name of Italian origin meaning "born in January".
Name Census estimates that about 61 living Americans carry the first name Genella. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Genella today is around 72 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Genella births was 1925 (13 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Genella. 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 Genella is about 72 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Genellas were born before 1964.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Genella. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
61
~ 1 in 5,618,924 Americans
Peak year
1925
13 babies that year
Average age
72
years old
1981 SSA rank
#10,937
Tracked since 1908
Census
Genella in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 178 people with the first name Genella, which placed it at #41,266 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
#41,266
National first-name rank
People counted
178
178 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
49.4% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Genella
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Genella is White at 49.4%. The next largest groups are Black (36.5%) and Hispanic (6.7%). 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 Genella 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 Genella at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White49.4% · 88
- Black or African American36.5% · 65
- Hispanic or Latino6.7% · 12
- Asian and Pacific Islander3.9% · 7
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.2% · 4
- Two or more races1.1% · 2
Popularity
Genella: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Genella from the 1900s through to the 1980s, spanning 9 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 77 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
Genella 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 Genella during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Genellas live
Origin
Meaning and history of Genella
Genella is a feminine given name with its roots traced back to the Latin language. The name is believed to have originated from the Latin word "genellus," which means "of noble birth" or "high-born." This suggests that the name was initially associated with aristocratic or upper-class families during ancient Roman times.
The earliest recorded usage of the name Genella can be found in historical records from the late Roman Empire period, around the 4th and 5th centuries AD. It was particularly prevalent in regions that were part of the Roman Empire, such as Italy, France, and parts of the Iberian Peninsula.
One of the earliest known references to the name Genella appears in a historical account from the 5th century, where a Roman noblewoman named Genella is mentioned as a prominent figure in the court of the Western Roman Emperor Honorius. This indicates that the name was in use among the Roman elite during that time.
Throughout the Middle Ages, the name Genella continued to be used, although its popularity waned. It was predominantly found in regions with strong Roman cultural influences, such as Italy and parts of France. During this period, the name was sometimes spelled as "Genela" or "Genella."
One notable figure bearing the name Genella was Genella of Tuscany, a 12th-century Italian noblewoman who played a significant role in the political affairs of the Tuscan region. She was renowned for her diplomatic skills and her efforts to maintain peace among the ruling families of the time.
Another prominent individual with the name Genella was Genella de Valois, a 14th-century French noblewoman who was a member of the prestigious House of Valois. She was known for her involvement in the cultural and artistic circles of the French court during her lifetime.
In the 16th century, the name Genella gained some popularity in Spain, where it was sometimes spelled as "Genela." One notable figure from this period was Genella de Mendoza, a Spanish courtier and lady-in-waiting to Queen Isabella of Castile.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the name Genella experienced a resurgence in popularity, particularly in Italy and France. This period saw the birth of Genella Corsini, an Italian noblewoman and patron of the arts who was known for her support of artists and intellectuals during the Italian Renaissance.
In more recent times, the name Genella has remained relatively uncommon, though it has been used sporadically in various parts of Europe and other regions with Roman cultural influences.
People
Genella + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Genella as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with G
Other first names starting with G with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Genella: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Genella?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 61 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Genella 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 5,618,924 US residents.
Is Genella a common name?
We classify Genella as "Very Rare". It ranks above 57.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 231 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Genella most popular?
The single biggest year for Genella was 1925, when 13 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Genella is about 72 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Genella in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 178 people with the name Genella, or 0.06 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #41,266 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 Genella 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 Genella?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Genella leans strongly female. 173 people counted with this name were female (98.9%), compared with 2 male bearers (1.1%). 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 Genella?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Genella is White at 49.4%. The next largest groups are Black (36.5%) and Hispanic (6.7%). 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 Genella most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Genella in the 2020 Census, accounting for 49.4% (88 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 Genella in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Genella a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Genella 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 Genella still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Genella 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 Genella 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 Americans are named Genella?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.