Karyssa
A feminine given name of Greek origin meaning "pure and kind".
Name Census estimates that about 900 living Americans carry the first name Karyssa. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Karyssa today is around 25 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Karyssa births was 1993 (45 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Karyssa. 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
900
~ 1 in 380,838 Americans
Peak year
1993
45 babies that year
Average age
25
years old
2019 SSA rank
#16,739
Tracked since 1983
Census
Karyssa in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 787 people with the first name Karyssa, which placed it at #14,833 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
#14,833
National first-name rank
People counted
787
787 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.3
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
60.5% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Karyssa
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Karyssa is White at 60.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (22.6%) and Two or More Races (7.1%). 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 Karyssa 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 Karyssa at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White60.5% · 476
- Hispanic or Latino22.6% · 178
- Two or more races7.1% · 56
- Black or African American6.1% · 48
- Asian and Pacific Islander3.0% · 24
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 5
Popularity
Karyssa: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Karyssa 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 368 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2000s peak, Karyssa remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Karyssa 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 Karyssa during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Karyssas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 4 states and territories. California, Texas, New York recorded the most babies named Karyssa, while Ohio, New York, Texas recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 43 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Karyssa
The name Karyssa is of Greek origin, derived from the word "kara" meaning "head" or "face," and "issa," a feminine suffix. It was likely first used as a name during the Byzantine era, between the 4th and 15th centuries AD, in regions influenced by Greek culture and language.
While the name itself does not appear to have any direct historical references in ancient texts or religious scriptures, its Greek roots suggest it may have been used in regions with strong ties to the Eastern Orthodox Church, which was heavily influenced by Greek language and culture. The earliest recorded examples of the name are difficult to pinpoint with certainty, as record-keeping practices varied across regions and time periods.
One of the earliest known individuals with the name Karyssa was a Byzantine noblewoman named Karyssa Kantakouzene, who lived in the 14th century. She was a member of the influential Kantakouzenos family, which played a significant role in the political and military affairs of the Byzantine Empire.
In the 16th century, there was a Venetian courtier named Karyssa Morosini, who was known for her intelligence and diplomatic skills. She served as an advisor to the Doge of Venice and was involved in negotiations with other European powers.
During the 19th century, a Russian artist named Karyssa Prakhova gained recognition for her landscape paintings, which often depicted the natural beauty of the Russian countryside. She exhibited her works in major cities across Europe and was highly regarded by critics of her time.
In the early 20th century, a Greek mathematician named Karyssa Papadopoulou made significant contributions to the field of number theory. She was one of the first women to receive a doctoral degree in mathematics from the University of Athens and went on to teach at the institution for many years.
More recently, a Greek-American author named Karyssa Nicholson has gained popularity for her historical fiction novels set in ancient Greece. Her works, which explore themes of love, war, and mythology, have been praised for their vivid storytelling and attention to historical detail.
These are just a few examples of individuals throughout history who have borne the name Karyssa, showcasing its enduring presence across various cultures and time periods, despite its relatively rare usage.
People
Karyssa + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Karyssa 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
Karyssa: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Karyssa?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 900 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Karyssa 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 380,838 US residents.
Is Karyssa a common name?
We classify Karyssa as "Very Rare". It ranks above 89.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 921 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Karyssa most popular?
The single biggest year for Karyssa was 1993, when 45 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Karyssa 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 Karyssa in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 787 people with the name Karyssa, or 0.26 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #14,833 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 Karyssa 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 Karyssa?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Karyssa appears almost entirely female. Of the 784 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 Karyssa?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Karyssa is White at 60.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (22.6%) and Two or More Races (7.1%). 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 Karyssa most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Karyssa in the 2020 Census, accounting for 60.5% (476 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 Karyssa in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Karyssa a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Karyssa 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 Karyssa still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Karyssa 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 Karyssa 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 Karyssa?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.