Manda
A feminine given name of Sanskrit origin meaning "prosperous" or "fortunate".
Name Census estimates that about 1,898 living Americans carry the first name Manda. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Manda today is around 47 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Manda births was 1975 (102 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Manda. 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
1.9K
~ 1 in 180,587 Americans
Peak year
1975
102 babies that year
Average age
47
years old
2016 SSA rank
#17,882
Tracked since 1880
Popularity
Manda: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Manda from the 1880s through to the 2010s, spanning 14 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1980s, with 729 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
Manda 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 Manda during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Mandas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 17 states and territories. Texas, California, Kentucky recorded the most babies named Manda, while Oklahoma, North Carolina, Colorado recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 31 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Manda
The name Manda has its origins in the Sanskrit language, which is an ancient Indo-Aryan language that originated in the Indian subcontinent around the 2nd millennium BCE. In Sanskrit, the name is derived from the word "manda," which means "slow" or "gentle." This suggests that the name may have originally been associated with qualities such as patience, calmness, or gentleness.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Manda can be found in the ancient Hindu scripture, the Mahabharata. In this epic, Manda is mentioned as the name of a warrior who fought alongside the Pandavas in the great war of Kurukshetra. The Mahabharata is believed to have been composed between the 8th and 4th centuries BCE, indicating that the name has a long and rich history in Indian culture.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals who bore the name Manda. One such person was Manda Mokshagundam Visvesvarayya (1861-1962), an eminent Indian engineer, scholar, and statesman who is widely regarded as the "Father of Modern Mysore State." He played a pivotal role in the construction of several dams and reservoirs in the erstwhile Mysore State, contributing significantly to the development of the region.
Another famous bearer of the name was Manda Rama Krishna (1925-2017), a renowned Indian classical dancer and choreographer. She was a pioneer in the field of Kuchipudi dance, a classical Indian dance form, and is credited with reviving and popularizing this art form both in India and abroad.
In the realm of literature, Manda Lal Nath (1924-2005) was a prominent Indian poet and writer who wrote extensively in the Hindi language. He was the recipient of several prestigious awards, including the Sahitya Akademi Award and the Padma Shri, one of India's highest civilian honors.
Moving beyond the Indian subcontinent, Manda Siduri was a Mesopotamian princess and high priestess who lived during the 3rd millennium BCE. She is mentioned in the Epic of Gilgamesh, one of the oldest known literary works, where she is depicted as a wise and influential figure who offers guidance to the hero Gilgamesh.
While the name Manda may have originated in the Indian subcontinent, it has since spread to various parts of the world, transcending cultural and geographical boundaries. Throughout its long history, the name has been borne by individuals from diverse backgrounds, each leaving their mark on the tapestry of human civilization.
People
Manda + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Manda as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with M
Other first names starting with M with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Manda: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Manda?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,898 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Manda 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 180,587 US residents.
Is Manda a common name?
We classify Manda as "Rare". It ranks above 93.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 3,294 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Manda most popular?
The single biggest year for Manda was 1975, when 102 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Manda is about 47 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Manda a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Manda 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.