Massa
A masculine name of Italian origin meaning "house" or "estate".
Name Census estimates that about 174 living Americans carry the first name Massa. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Massa today is around 11 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Massa births was 2024 (13 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Massa. 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.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Massa with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
174
~ 1 in 1,969,853 Americans
Peak year
2024
13 babies that year
Average age
11
years old
2024 SSA rank
#8,233
Tracked since 2003
Census
Massa in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 456 people with the first name Massa, which placed it at #22,008 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
#22,008
National first-name rank
People counted
456
456 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
68.9% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Massa
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Massa is Black at 68.9%. The next largest groups are White (21.1%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (5.0%). 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 Massa 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 Massa at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American68.9% · 314
- White21.1% · 96
- Asian and Pacific Islander5.0% · 23
- Two or more races2.6% · 12
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.5% · 7
- Hispanic or Latino0.9% · 4
Popularity
Massa: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Massa from the 2000s through to the 2020s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 74 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Massa remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Massa 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 Massa 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 Massa
The given name Massa has its origins in the Sanskrit language, which was spoken in ancient India. The name is derived from the Sanskrit word "Maha," which means "great" or "mighty." This suggests that the name was originally given to individuals who were perceived as having a strong and powerful presence.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Massa can be found in the ancient Indian epic, the Mahabharata. In this text, Massa is mentioned as a warrior and a follower of the Pandava prince, Arjuna. This reference dates back to around the 4th century BCE, indicating the antiquity of the name's usage.
In the medieval period, the name Massa gained popularity among Hindu communities across the Indian subcontinent. Several notable figures from this era bore the name, including Massa Kavi, a Sanskrit poet and scholar who lived in the 12th century CE. Massa Kavi's literary works, which included commentaries on ancient Hindu texts, were widely acclaimed and contributed to the preservation of Sanskrit literature.
Another significant historical figure with the name Massa was Massa Rangappa, a renowned military leader who served under the Vijayanagar Empire in the 16th century CE. Massa Rangappa was known for his bravery and strategic skills, and he played a crucial role in several battles against the Deccan Sultanates.
In more recent times, the name Massa has been associated with individuals from various fields, such as arts, literature, and politics. One notable example is Massa Gessen, a Russian-American journalist and author born in 1967. Gessen has written extensively on topics related to Russia and LGBTQ+ rights, and their work has been widely acclaimed.
Another individual with the name Massa is Massa Mbolhi, a professional football (soccer) player from Algeria, born in 1986. Mbolhi has represented Algeria at the international level and has played for several clubs in Europe and the Middle East.
It is worth noting that while the name Massa has its roots in Sanskrit and Hindu culture, it has transcended geographical and cultural boundaries over time. Individuals with this name can be found across various regions and communities, reflecting the name's enduring appeal and adaptability.
People
Massa + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Massa 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
Massa: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Massa?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 174 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Massa 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 1,969,853 US residents.
Is Massa a common name?
We classify Massa as "Very Rare". It ranks above 72.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 175 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Massa most popular?
The single biggest year for Massa was 2024, when 13 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Massa 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 Massa in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 456 people with the name Massa, or 0.15 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #22,008 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 Massa 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 Massa?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Massa leans strongly female. 411 people counted with this name were female (90.9%), compared with 41 male bearers (9.1%). 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 Massa?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Massa is Black at 68.9%. The next largest groups are White (21.1%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (5.0%). 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 Massa most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Massa in the 2020 Census, accounting for 68.9% (314 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 Massa in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Massa a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Massa 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 Massa still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Massa 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 Massa 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 people are named Massa?
Find out how many Americans are named Massa on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.