Latonga
A Samoan name meaning "sailing along or visiting from village to village".
Name Census estimates that about 113 living Americans carry the first name Latonga. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Latonga today is around 54 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Latonga births was 1973 (13 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Latonga. 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
113
~ 1 in 3,033,224 Americans
Peak year
1973
13 babies that year
Average age
54
years old
1980 SSA rank
#8,642
Tracked since 1963
Popularity
Latonga: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Latonga from the 1960s through to the 1980s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1970s, with 87 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1970s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Latonga 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 Latonga during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Latongas live
Origin
Meaning and history of Latonga
The name Latonga has its origins in the Polynesian region, originating from the Tongan language. It is believed to have emerged sometime in the 15th or 16th century, during the height of the Tongan maritime empire. The name is derived from the words "lato" meaning "sacred" and "nga" meaning "place," suggesting a revered or sacred location.
One of the earliest known references to the name can be found in the ancient oral traditions and chants of Tonga, where it was often used to describe sacred sites or locations of spiritual significance. It is also mentioned in some of the early written records of European explorers and missionaries who visited the region in the 17th and 18th centuries.
The first recorded individual with the name Latonga was a Tongan chief who lived in the late 16th century. His exact birth and death dates are unknown, but he is mentioned in various oral histories as a powerful leader who played a significant role in the expansion of the Tongan maritime empire.
Another notable bearer of the name was Latonga'ahau, a Tongan princess and daughter of the Tu'i Tonga (paramount chief) who lived in the early 17th century. She is celebrated in Tongan folklore for her wisdom and her efforts to preserve the island's cultural traditions.
In the 19th century, Latonga Tufele was a prominent Tongan scholar and historian who helped to document and preserve the island's oral traditions and histories. He was born in 1820 and lived until the early 1900s.
Latonga Filifolau was a renowned Tongan navigator and explorer who lived in the late 19th century. He was known for his extensive voyages across the Pacific, during which he discovered and mapped several previously uncharted islands.
Lastly, Latonga Valu was a Tongan poet and playwright who rose to prominence in the early 20th century. Born in 1885, his works helped to revive and popularize Tongan literature and performance arts.
Throughout its history, the name Latonga has been closely associated with Tongan culture, religion, and tradition, reflecting the importance of sacred sites and spiritual beliefs within the island's society.
People
Latonga + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Latonga 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
Latonga: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Latonga?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 113 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Latonga 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 3,033,224 US residents.
Is Latonga a common name?
We classify Latonga as "Very Rare". It ranks above 66.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 128 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Latonga most popular?
The single biggest year for Latonga was 1973, when 13 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Latonga is about 54 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
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 Latonga in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Latonga a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Latonga 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 Latonga still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Latonga 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 Latonga 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.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people have Latonga as a first name?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.