Jenisa
A feminine name of unknown origin, potentially derived from the name Genesis.
Name Census estimates that about 155 living Americans carry the first name Jenisa. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Jenisa today is around 25 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Jenisa births was 2005 (16 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Jenisa. 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
155
~ 1 in 2,211,318 Americans
Peak year
2005
16 babies that year
Average age
25
years old
2019 SSA rank
#16,614
Tracked since 1981
Census
Jenisa in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 217 people with the first name Jenisa, which placed it at #36,520 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
#36,520
National first-name rank
People counted
217
217 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Hispanic or Latino
42.9% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Jenisa
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Jenisa is Hispanic at 42.9%. The next largest groups are White (24.9%) and Black (13.8%). 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 Jenisa 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 Jenisa at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino42.9% · 93
- White24.9% · 54
- Black or African American13.8% · 30
- Asian and Pacific Islander12.9% · 28
- Two or more races4.6% · 10
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 2
Popularity
Jenisa: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Jenisa from the 1980s through to the 2010s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 78 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Jenisa 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 Jenisa 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 Jenisa
The name Jenisa has its origins in the Sanskrit language, which was prevalent in ancient India during the Vedic period, dating back to around 1500 BCE. It is derived from the Sanskrit word "Jenisha," which means "victorious" or "conquering." The name was likely given to children with the hope that they would lead a successful and triumphant life.
In ancient Hindu scriptures, such as the Puranas and the Mahabharata, there are references to characters with names similar to Jenisa. However, the exact spelling and context of these names are not entirely clear, making it difficult to establish a definitive historical connection.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Jenisa can be found in the writings of the Sanskrit scholar Panini, who lived around the 4th century BCE. In his work, Ashtadhyayi, he mentions a grammatical rule related to the formation of names like Jenisa.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals who bore the name Jenisa. One such person was Jenisa Devi, a Hindu queen who ruled over the Kingdom of Bikaner in present-day Rajasthan, India, during the 16th century. She was known for her wisdom and benevolent rule.
Another historical figure with the name Jenisa was Jenisa Kaur, a Sikh warrior and poet who lived in the 18th century. She is remembered for her bravery and her contribution to preserving the Sikh heritage during times of persecution.
In the field of literature, Jenisa Nandi was a Bengali writer and poet who lived in the 19th century. She was known for her works that shed light on the societal conditions and struggles faced by women during that time period.
Jenisa Bhattacharya was an Indian freedom fighter and social reformer who actively participated in the Indian independence movement against British rule in the early 20th century. She was also a strong advocate for women's rights and education.
Lastly, Jenisa Kapoor was a prominent Indian classical dancer and choreographer who lived in the latter half of the 20th century. She was instrumental in reviving and promoting the Kathak dance form, and her contributions to the field of dance were widely recognized.
While the name Jenisa has its roots in ancient India, it has since gained popularity and usage across various cultures and regions, particularly in the Indian subcontinent and among the Indian diaspora around the world.
People
Jenisa + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Jenisa 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
Jenisa: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Jenisa?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 155 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Jenisa 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 2,211,318 US residents.
Is Jenisa a common name?
We classify Jenisa as "Very Rare". It ranks above 70.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 159 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Jenisa most popular?
The single biggest year for Jenisa was 2005, when 16 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Jenisa is about 25 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Jenisa in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 217 people with the name Jenisa, or 0.07 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #36,520 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 Jenisa 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 Jenisa?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Jenisa appears almost entirely female. Of the 220 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 Jenisa?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Jenisa is Hispanic at 42.9%. The next largest groups are White (24.9%) and Black (13.8%). 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 Jenisa most often in the Census?
Hispanic is the largest reported group for people named Jenisa in the 2020 Census, accounting for 42.9% (93 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 Jenisa in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Jenisa a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Jenisa 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 Jenisa still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Jenisa 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 Jenisa 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 Jenisa?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.