Manya
A feminine name of Russian origin meaning "wished for child".
Name Census estimates that about 903 living Americans carry the first name Manya. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Manya today is around 31 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Manya births was 2012 (41 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Manya. 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
903
~ 1 in 379,573 Americans
Peak year
2012
41 babies that year
Average age
31
years old
2024 SSA rank
#6,529
Tracked since 1917
Popularity
Manya: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Manya from the 1910s through to the 2020s, spanning 11 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 250 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Manya 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 Manya during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Manyas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 5 states and territories. California, New Jersey, New York recorded the most babies named Manya, while Texas, Ohio, New York recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 23 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Manya
The name Manya is a female given name with origins in several languages and cultures. It is derived from the Sanskrit word "manya," meaning "worthy of honor" or "respectable." In Hindi, the name is pronounced "munn-yaa" and is often used as a diminutive form of the name Manisha.
In Russian, the name Manya is a diminutive form of the name Maria, which is derived from the Hebrew name Miryam. It is also used as a diminutive form of the name Marina in some Slavic countries. The name has been in use in Russia since at least the 19th century.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Manya is in the ancient Indian epic poem, the Mahabharata, where it is mentioned as the name of a princess. In the Jewish tradition, there is a reference to a woman named Manya in the Talmud, a central text of Rabbinic Judaism.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals who bore the name Manya. One of the earliest was Manya Shochat (1879-1961), a Russian-born Israeli politician and one of the signatories of the Israeli Declaration of Independence. Another notable figure was Manya Sklodowska (1867-1939), the mother of Marie Curie, the famous physicist and chemist.
In the world of literature, Manya Shohat (1880-1961) was a prominent Hebrew writer and educator, known for her contributions to children's literature in Israel. Manya Wilbor-Topaz (1894-1978) was a Polish-born American poet and translator, renowned for her translations of Yiddish literature.
In the realm of the arts, Manya Unielider (1886-1971) was a Russian-born American painter and sculptor, known for her modernist works. Manya Baysman (1924-2014) was a prominent Israeli writer and actress, who made significant contributions to the Israeli theater scene.
These are just a few examples of the many notable individuals who have borne the name Manya throughout history, spanning various fields and cultures.
People
Manya + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Manya 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
Manya: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Manya?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 903 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Manya 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 379,573 US residents.
Is Manya a common name?
We classify Manya as "Very Rare". It ranks above 89.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,013 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Manya most popular?
The single biggest year for Manya was 2012, when 41 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Manya is about 31 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Manya a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Manya 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.