Jaquita
A feminine name of Spanish origin meaning "small" or "little one".
Name Census estimates that about 700 living Americans carry the first name Jaquita. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Jaquita today is around 43 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Jaquita births was 1987 (46 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Jaquita. 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
700
~ 1 in 489,649 Americans
Peak year
1987
46 babies that year
Average age
43
years old
2000 SSA rank
#10,238
Tracked since 1939
Popularity
Jaquita: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Jaquita from the 1930s through to the 2000s, spanning 8 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1980s, with 318 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
Jaquita 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 Jaquita during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Jaquitas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 7 states and territories. Georgia, Mississippi, Alabama recorded the most babies named Jaquita, while Michigan, Louisiana, Illinois recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 8 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Jaquita
The name Jaquita is a feminine diminutive form of the Spanish name Jaca, which itself is derived from the Latin name Jacoba. The name Jacoba ultimately traces its origins back to the Hebrew name Ya'aqov, meaning "supplanter" or "one who follows."
Jaquita emerged as a name in Spain during the Middle Ages, likely first appearing in records and documents from the 13th or 14th century. It was initially a pet name or nickname for women named Jacoba or other variations of the name Jaca.
In medieval Spanish literature, there are references to characters named Jaquita, though none particularly famous or noteworthy. The name was more commonly found in church records and local documents of the time, indicating its use among the general population.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Jaquita is Jaquita de Núñez, a Spanish noble and landowner who lived in the late 15th century in the region of Andalusia. Another notable bearer of the name was Jaquita de Mendoza, a Spanish poet and writer who lived in the 16th century and was associated with the literary circles of Renaissance Spain.
In the 17th century, there was a Jaquita de la Cruz, a Spanish nun and mystic who lived in the convent of Santa Clara in Avila, Spain, and was known for her spiritual writings and teachings. A century later, Jaquita María de la Concepción was a Spanish painter active in the late 18th century, known for her religious works and portraits.
Another historical figure with the name Jaquita was Jaquita Pardo Bazán, a Spanish novelist, journalist, and literary critic who lived from 1851 to 1921. She was a prominent figure in the Spanish literary movement known as Naturalism and was highly regarded for her works exploring social and gender issues.
While the name Jaquita has its roots in Spain and the Spanish language, it has also been used in various Latin American countries and communities with Spanish cultural influences. However, it has remained a relatively uncommon name throughout history, with only occasional appearances in records and literature.
People
Jaquita + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Jaquita as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with J
Other first names starting with J with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Jaquita: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Jaquita?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 700 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Jaquita 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 489,649 US residents.
Is Jaquita a common name?
We classify Jaquita as "Very Rare". It ranks above 87.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 785 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Jaquita most popular?
The single biggest year for Jaquita was 1987, when 46 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Jaquita is about 43 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Jaquita a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Jaquita 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.
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.