Genora
Feminine name of uncertain meaning, possibly of English origin.
Name Census estimates that about 204 living Americans carry the first name Genora. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Genora today is around 68 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Genora births was 1932 (17 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Genora. 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 Genora is about 68 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Genoras were born before 1968.
People living today
204
~ 1 in 1,680,168 Americans
Peak year
1932
17 babies that year
Average age
68
years old
2021 SSA rank
#16,069
Tracked since 1895
Census
Genora in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 292 people with the first name Genora, which placed it at #30,039 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
#30,039
National first-name rank
People counted
292
292 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
67.5% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Genora
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Genora is Black at 67.5%. The next largest groups are White (26.7%) and Hispanic (2.4%). 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 Genora 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 Genora at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American67.5% · 197
- White26.7% · 78
- Hispanic or Latino2.4% · 7
- Two or more races2.1% · 6
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.3% · 1
Popularity
Genora: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Genora from the 1890s through to the 2020s, spanning 12 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1930s, with 111 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1930s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Genora 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 Genora during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Genoras live
Origin
Meaning and history of Genora
The name Genora originates from the Greek language and can be traced back to ancient times. It is believed to be derived from the Greek word "genos," which means "race" or "family," and the suffix "-ora," which signifies "watchful" or "vigilant." Thus, the name Genora could be interpreted as "one who watches over the family" or "protector of the race."
In ancient Greek mythology, there are references to a minor goddess named Genora, who was associated with fertility and the protection of households. However, the historical records about this deity are scarce, and her significance in Greek mythology remains relatively obscure.
The earliest recorded use of the name Genora can be found in ancient Greek texts dating back to the 5th century BCE. One notable individual from this era was Genora of Corinth, a renowned poet and philosopher who was praised for her wisdom and literary works, though few of her writings have survived to modern times.
During the Byzantine Empire, the name Genora gained some popularity among the aristocracy. A notable figure from this period was Genora Kantakouzene, a noblewoman and influential figure at the court of Emperor John VI Kantakouzenos in the 14th century.
In the Renaissance period, the name Genora was occasionally used in Italy and other parts of Europe. One notable figure from this era was Genora Benci, an Italian noblewoman who was the subject of a famous portrait painted by Leonardo da Vinci in the late 15th century.
In the 19th century, the name Genora was revived in some English-speaking countries. One notable bearer of this name was Genora Johnson Dollinger (1848-1924), an American author and educator who wrote several books on etiquette and social graces.
Another historical figure with the name Genora was Genora Hamline Bierce (1859-1935), an American writer and journalist who was the wife of the famous author Ambrose Bierce. She wrote several novels and short stories, some of which were published posthumously.
People
Genora + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Genora 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
Genora: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Genora?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 204 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Genora 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 1,680,168 US residents.
Is Genora a common name?
We classify Genora as "Very Rare". It ranks above 74.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 578 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Genora most popular?
The single biggest year for Genora was 1932, when 17 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Genora is about 68 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Genora in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 292 people with the name Genora, or 0.10 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #30,039 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 Genora 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 Genora?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Genora appears almost entirely female. Of the 280 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 Genora?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Genora is Black at 67.5%. The next largest groups are White (26.7%) and Hispanic (2.4%). 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 Genora most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Genora in the 2020 Census, accounting for 67.5% (197 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 Genora in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Genora a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Genora 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 Genora still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Genora 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 Genora 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 Genora?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.