Lavae
Feminine name meaning "eruption of molten rock" of unknown origin.
Name Census estimates that about 68 living Americans carry the first name Lavae. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Lavae today is around 11 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Lavae births was 2016 (12 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Lavae. 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.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Lavae. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
68
~ 1 in 5,040,505 Americans
Peak year
2016
12 babies that year
Average age
11
years old
2024 SSA rank
#16,571
Tracked since 1938
Census
Lavae in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 132 people with the first name Lavae, which placed it at #48,390 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
#48,390
National first-name rank
People counted
132
132 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.0
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
46.2% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Lavae
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Lavae is White at 46.2%. The next largest groups are Black (34.8%) and Hispanic (12.1%). 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 Lavae 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 Lavae at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White46.2% · 61
- Black or African American34.8% · 46
- Hispanic or Latino12.1% · 16
- Two or more races3.8% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native3.0% · 4
Popularity
Lavae: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Lavae from the 1930s through to the 2020s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 49 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2010s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Lavae 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 Lavae during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Lavae
The name Lavae has its origins in the ancient Etruscan civilization, which flourished in what is now modern-day Italy between the 8th and 3rd centuries BC. The Etruscans were a culturally advanced people who left a significant impact on the development of ancient Roman society and language.
Lavae is derived from the Etruscan word "lav," which means "to wash" or "to cleanse." This connection suggests that the name may have been associated with concepts of purity, renewal, or purification rituals within Etruscan culture. The addition of the suffix "-ae" was a common practice in Etruscan naming conventions.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Lavae can be found in the Etruscan inscriptions discovered in the ancient city of Tarquinia, which date back to the 6th century BC. These inscriptions were often found on funerary monuments, indicating that the name may have held spiritual or ritualistic significance.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals who bore the name Lavae. One of the most famous was Lavae Lucretia, a Roman matron from the 6th century BC, whose tragic story is recounted in the writings of Livy and other ancient historians. Her alleged rape by the son of the Etruscan king Tarquinius Superbus is said to have sparked the overthrow of the Roman monarchy and the establishment of the Roman Republic.
Another prominent figure was Lavae Numantia, a revered Etruscan priestess who lived in the 4th century BC. She was renowned for her wisdom and her ability to interpret the will of the gods through various divination practices. Her teachings and prophecies were widely respected and influenced the religious and cultural traditions of the Etruscan people.
In the 2nd century AD, there was a Roman senator named Marcus Lavae Paulinus, who was known for his oratorical skills and his advocacy for the rights of the plebeian class. His speeches and political actions played a crucial role in shaping the social and political landscape of ancient Rome during his lifetime.
During the Renaissance period, an Italian artist named Lavae Cellini gained recognition for his exceptional skills in metalworking and sculpture. Born in 1500, Cellini's masterpieces, such as the famous Perseus with the Head of Medusa, showcased his remarkable talent and contributed to the artistic renaissance that swept through Europe during that era.
In the 18th century, there was a French philosopher and writer named Lavae Voltaire, whose real name was François-Marie Arouet. Born in 1694, Voltaire was a prominent figure of the Enlightenment period and is remembered for his advocacy of freedom of religion, freedom of expression, and his critiques of the oppressive social and political structures of his time.
People
Lavae + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Lavae 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
Lavae: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Lavae?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 68 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Lavae 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 5,040,505 US residents.
Is Lavae a common name?
We classify Lavae as "Very Rare". It ranks above 58.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 73 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Lavae most popular?
The single biggest year for Lavae was 2016, when 12 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Lavae is about 11 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Lavae in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 132 people with the name Lavae, or 0.04 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #48,390 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 Lavae 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 Lavae?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Lavae leans strongly female. 123 people counted with this name were female (92.5%), compared with 10 male bearers (7.5%). 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 Lavae?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Lavae is White at 46.2%. The next largest groups are Black (34.8%) and Hispanic (12.1%). 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 Lavae most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Lavae in the 2020 Census, accounting for 46.2% (61 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 Lavae in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Lavae a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Lavae 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 Lavae still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Lavae 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 Lavae 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 Americans are named Lavae?
See how many people share the name Lavae on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.