Laquetta
French diminutive feminine name meaning "the little one".
Name Census estimates that about 870 living Americans carry the first name Laquetta. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Laquetta today is around 49 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Laquetta births was 1987 (44 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Laquetta. 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
870
~ 1 in 393,971 Americans
Peak year
1987
44 babies that year
Average age
49
years old
1996 SSA rank
#14,768
Tracked since 1933
Popularity
Laquetta: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Laquetta from the 1930s through to the 1990s, spanning 7 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1980s, with 349 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1980s peak, Laquetta remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Laquetta 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 Laquetta during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Laquettas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 9 states and territories. South Carolina, Texas, Alabama recorded the most babies named Laquetta, while Virginia, Louisiana, Illinois recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 12 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Laquetta
Laquetta is a feminine given name that originated in the United States during the mid-20th century. It is believed to be a combination of two French words: "la" meaning "the" and "quête" meaning "quest" or "search". The name may have been created to convey the idea of a woman on a journey or quest.
While the name is relatively modern, it may have been inspired by older French words or names. The French word "quête" can be traced back to the Old French "queste" and the Latin "quaestus", meaning "gain" or "acquisition". There are also some similarities to the French name "Colette", derived from the Late Latin name "Nicoletta".
The earliest recorded use of the name Laquetta is believed to be in the United States in the early 1900s. However, it did not become more widely used until the mid-20th century, particularly in African American communities.
One of the earliest notable individuals with the name Laquetta was Laquetta Monique, an American actress born in 1942. She appeared in various television shows and films in the 1970s and 1980s, including "Good Times" and "The Jeffersons".
Another individual with the name was Laquetta Dyer (1950-2017), an American politician and community activist from Detroit, Michigan. She served on the Detroit City Council and was known for her efforts to improve education and community development.
Laquetta Walker (1925-2004) was an African American writer and educator from Texas. She published several works of poetry and fiction, including the novel "Jubilee" in 1966, which explored the experiences of Black Americans during the Civil War era.
Laquetta Sharnee (born 1981) is a contemporary American singer and songwriter. She has released several albums and is known for her blend of R&B, pop, and gospel music.
Laquetta Calhoun (born 1989) is an American professional basketball player who has played in the WNBA and overseas leagues. She was a standout player at the University of Arkansas before being drafted by the Connecticut Sun in 2011.
While the name Laquetta is not as common as some other names, it has been used throughout the 20th and 21st centuries, particularly within African American communities. Its unique combination of French and American influences has given it a distinctive and meaningful origin.
People
Laquetta + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Laquetta 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
Laquetta: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Laquetta?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 870 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Laquetta 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 393,971 US residents.
Is Laquetta a common name?
We classify Laquetta as "Very Rare". It ranks above 89.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,031 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Laquetta most popular?
The single biggest year for Laquetta was 1987, when 44 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Laquetta is about 49 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Laquetta a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Laquetta 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.