Luisa
A feminine name of Germanic origin meaning "renowned warrior" or "famous battle-maid."
Name Census estimates that about 11,604 living Americans carry the first name Luisa. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Luisa today is around 30 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Luisa births was 2022 (319 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Luisa. 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
12K
~ 1 in 29,538 Americans
Peak year
2022
319 babies that year
Average age
30
years old
1990 SSA rank
#869
Tracked since 1882
Gender
Gender distribution for Luisa
Out of the 14,106 babies given the name Luisa since 1880, 99.8% were registered as female. The name sits firmly on the female side of the spectrum, with only a handful of male registrations across the entire dataset.
Luisa as a male name
- Ranked #6,189 in 1990
- 8 male births in 1990
- Peak: 1988 (8 births)
Luisa as a female name
- Ranked #869 in 2024
- 310 female births in 2024
- Peak: 2022 (319 births)
Popularity
Luisa: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Luisa from the 1880s through to the 2020s, spanning 15 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 2,246 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2000s peak, Luisa remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Luisa 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 Luisa during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Luisas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 28 states and territories. Texas, California, New York recorded the most babies named Luisa, while Wisconsin, Missouri, Tennessee recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 380 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Luisa
The name Luisa has its origins in the German language, derived from the ancient Germanic name Chlodovicus or Hlodovikus. It is a feminine form of the masculine name Louis, which means "renowned warrior" or "famous in battle." The name has been in use since the Middle Ages and was particularly popular among the nobility and royalty of Europe.
In the 9th century, the name was borne by Luisa of Saxony, a Benedictine nun and abbess who played a significant role in the spread of Christianity in Germany. She is venerated as a saint in the Catholic Church.
During the Renaissance, the name gained popularity in Italy, where it was often spelled as Luisa or Louisa. One of the most notable bearers of the name from this period was Luisa de Guzmán (1613-1666), a Spanish courtier and mistress of King Philip IV of Spain.
In the 18th century, the name was favored by the ruling houses of Europe. Luisa of Parma (1751-1819) was a Spanish infanta and the wife of the future King Charles IV of Spain. Her daughter, Luisa Carlota de Borbón (1777-1838), was the first wife of the Portuguese King Dom João VI.
The 19th century saw the name gain popularity in literature and the arts. Luisa Todi (1753-1833) was an Italian opera singer renowned for her vocal abilities and stage presence. Luisa Valenzuela (1938-2023) was an influential Argentine writer and author of novels and short stories.
Other notable historical figures with the name Luisa include Luisa Capetillo (1879-1922), a Puerto Rican labor leader and activist for women's rights, and Luisa Tetrazzini (1871-1940), an Italian coloratura soprano who was one of the most celebrated operatic singers of her time.
People
Luisa + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Luisa 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
Luisa: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Luisa?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 11,604 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Luisa 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 29,538 US residents.
Is Luisa a common name?
We classify Luisa as "Uncommon". It ranks above 97.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 14,106 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Luisa most popular?
The single biggest year for Luisa was 2022, when 319 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Luisa is about 30 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Luisa a female name?
Yes, 99.8% of people registered as Luisa 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.