Kachina
A term from Hopi culture referring to supernatural spirit beings.
Name Census estimates that about 281 living Americans carry the first name Kachina. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Kachina today is around 38 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Kachina births was 1994 (20 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Kachina. 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
281
~ 1 in 1,219,766 Americans
Peak year
1994
20 babies that year
Average age
38
years old
2009 SSA rank
#18,655
Tracked since 1973
Census
Kachina in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 286 people with the first name Kachina, which placed it at #30,451 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
#30,451
National first-name rank
People counted
286
286 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
35.3% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kachina
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Kachina is White at 35.3%. The next largest groups are Black (30.8%) and Two or More Races (17.5%). 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 Kachina 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 Kachina at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White35.3% · 101
- Black or African American30.8% · 88
- Two or more races17.5% · 50
- American Indian and Alaska Native10.1% · 29
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 10
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.8% · 8
Popularity
Kachina: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Kachina from the 1970s through to the 2000s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 127 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1990s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Kachina 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 Kachina during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Kachinas live
Origin
Meaning and history of Kachina
The name Kachina originates from the Hopi language, spoken by the Hopi Native American tribe in northeastern Arizona. The Hopis have a rich cultural tradition that revolves around kachina dolls, which are carved figurines representing spirit beings known as kachinas. The name itself is derived from the Hopi word 'katsina', meaning 'life bringer' or 'spirit messenger'.
The kachinas play a significant role in Hopi ceremonies and rituals, serving as intermediaries between the Hopi people and the spiritual realm. These ceremonies date back centuries and are deeply rooted in the tribe's belief system and way of life. The kachina dolls, intricately carved and painted, are given as gifts to children to teach them about the tribe's history and traditions.
While the name Kachina has its roots in the Hopi culture, it has been adopted by people outside the tribe as well. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name being used is Kachina Sumner, a Hopi woman born around 1880 who became famous for her traditional pottery and weaving skills.
Another notable figure with the name Kachina is Kachina Yeloitz, a Hopi artist born in 1952 who is renowned for her intricate kachina doll carvings and paintings. Her work has been exhibited in museums and galleries across the United States, showcasing the rich cultural heritage of the Hopi people.
In the realm of literature, Kachina Frye is an author and poet of Hopi descent, born in 1969. Her works often explore themes of Native American identity, spirituality, and the preservation of cultural traditions. Frye's poems have been published in various anthologies and literary journals, garnering critical acclaim.
Beyond the Hopi community, the name Kachina has also been adopted by individuals with an appreciation for Native American culture and spirituality. Kachina Wilbur, born in 1942, is a renowned artist and activist who has dedicated her life to promoting Native American rights and education. Her vibrant paintings and sculptures often depict kachina figures and other symbolic elements of indigenous cultures.
Lastly, Kachina Reidhead, born in 1976, is a successful entrepreneur and philanthropist who has worked extensively with Native American communities. Through her foundation, she supports initiatives aimed at preserving traditional crafts, promoting cultural education, and empowering indigenous youth.
People
Kachina + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Kachina as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with K
Other first names starting with K with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Kachina: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Kachina?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 281 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Kachina 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 1,219,766 US residents.
Is Kachina a common name?
We classify Kachina as "Very Rare". It ranks above 78.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 296 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Kachina most popular?
The single biggest year for Kachina was 1994, when 20 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Kachina is about 38 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Kachina in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 286 people with the name Kachina, or 0.09 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #30,451 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 Kachina 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 Kachina?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Kachina appears almost entirely female. Of the 290 people counted with this name, 99.7% 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 Kachina?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Kachina is White at 35.3%. The next largest groups are Black (30.8%) and Two or More Races (17.5%). 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 Kachina most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Kachina in the 2020 Census, accounting for 35.3% (101 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 Kachina in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Kachina a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Kachina 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 Kachina still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Kachina 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 Kachina 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 have Kachina as a first name?
You can see how many Americans are named Kachina on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.