Lakeia
An African American feminine name of obscure origin, possibly meaning "beautiful".
Name Census estimates that about 490 living Americans carry the first name Lakeia. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Lakeia today is around 40 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Lakeia births was 1984 (36 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Lakeia. 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
490
~ 1 in 699,499 Americans
Peak year
1984
36 babies that year
Average age
40
years old
2008 SSA rank
#14,676
Tracked since 1974
Popularity
Lakeia: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Lakeia from the 1970s through to the 2000s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1980s, with 260 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
Lakeia 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 Lakeia during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Lakeias live
The SSA's state-level files cover 4 states and territories. Maryland, New York, District of Columbia recorded the most babies named Lakeia, while Indiana, District of Columbia, New York recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 7 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Lakeia
The name Lakeia has its origins in the African language of Kiswahili, spoken primarily in East Africa. It is believed to have emerged sometime during the late 19th or early 20th century, possibly derived from the Kiswahili word "lake," meaning "to be born."
In its earliest recorded usage, Lakeia was a feminine given name bestowed upon children born in coastal regions of present-day Kenya and Tanzania. It was a name that celebrated the arrival of a new life and the joy of childbirth.
While there are no definitive records of the name appearing in ancient texts or religious scriptures, some scholars suggest that it may have been influenced by the similar-sounding names found in certain West African cultures, such as the Yoruba people of Nigeria.
One of the earliest known individuals to bear the name Lakeia was Lakeia Ndambu, a prominent Kenyan educator and women's rights activist who lived from 1892 to 1978. Her work in establishing schools for girls and advocating for gender equality left a lasting impact on her community.
Another notable figure was Lakeia Mtemvu, a Tanzanian singer and songwriter born in 1935, whose music helped preserve and popularize traditional Kiswahili folk songs throughout East Africa.
In the United States, the name Lakeia gained popularity in the latter half of the 20th century, particularly among African American communities. One of the first high-profile individuals to bear the name was Lakeia Spencer, an accomplished track and field athlete who won a gold medal in the 4x400 meter relay at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul.
Another famous Lakeia was Lakeia Ridgeway, a groundbreaking journalist and news anchor who became the first African American woman to anchor a prime-time newscast in New York City when she joined WABC-TV in 1994.
Lastly, Lakeia Henderson, born in 1977, is a renowned fashion designer and entrepreneur whose eponymous clothing line has gained a dedicated following for its modern, sophisticated designs inspired by her African heritage.
People
Lakeia + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Lakeia as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with L
Other first names starting with L with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Lakeia: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Lakeia?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 490 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Lakeia 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 699,499 US residents.
Is Lakeia a common name?
We classify Lakeia as "Very Rare". It ranks above 84.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 520 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Lakeia most popular?
The single biggest year for Lakeia was 1984, when 36 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Lakeia is about 40 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Lakeia a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Lakeia 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.