Monalisa
A feminine name of Italian origin meaning "my little one".
Name Census estimates that about 992 living Americans carry the first name Monalisa. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Monalisa today is around 43 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Monalisa births was 1965 (37 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Monalisa. 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
992
~ 1 in 345,518 Americans
Peak year
1965
37 babies that year
Average age
43
years old
2024 SSA rank
#12,998
Tracked since 1950
Popularity
Monalisa: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Monalisa from the 1950s through to the 2020s, spanning 8 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1960s, with 241 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1960s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Monalisa 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 Monalisa during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Monalisas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 5 states and territories. California, New York, Hawaii recorded the most babies named Monalisa, while Louisiana, Texas, Hawaii recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 30 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Monalisa
The name Monalisa is of Italian origin, derived from the combination of two words: "Mona" and "Lisa." "Mona" is an Italian form of the name "Madonna," meaning "My Lady," while "Lisa" is a shortened version of the name "Elisabetta," the Italian form of Elizabeth.
The name gained prominence in the early 16th century with the famous painting "Mona Lisa" by Leonardo da Vinci. The subject of the painting, whose identity remains a mystery, is believed to have been Lisa Gherardini, the wife of a wealthy Florentine silk merchant named Francesco del Giocondo. The painting, completed around 1519, is now one of the most recognizable and valuable works of art in the world.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Monalisa can be found in the 1542 book "Il Libro del Cortegiano" (The Book of the Courtier) by Baldassare Castiglione, where he mentions a woman named "Monalisa Strozzi." However, the name's popularity did not truly take off until after the 19th century, when interest in the famous painting and its subject grew.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Monalisa. One such person was Monalisa Chinda (1888-1937), an Indian activist and social reformer who fought against the practice of sati, the Hindu ritual of a widow immolating herself on her husband's funeral pyre. Another was Monalisa Zwambila (1949-2018), a Zimbabwean diplomat and politician who served as the first female Secretary for External Affairs in her country.
In the creative arts, Monalisa Ghanjapuri (born 1966) is an Indian film actress and dancer who has appeared in numerous Bollywood productions. Monalisa Perez (born 1996) is a Puerto Rican singer and songwriter known for her Latin pop and urban music. Monalisa Chinda (born 1974) is a Nigerian actress and film producer who has starred in numerous Nollywood movies.
These are just a few examples of the diverse individuals who have carried the name Monalisa throughout history, each leaving their mark in their respective fields and cultures.
People
Monalisa + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Monalisa 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
Monalisa: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Monalisa?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 992 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Monalisa 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 345,518 US residents.
Is Monalisa a common name?
We classify Monalisa as "Very Rare". It ranks above 90.1% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,116 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Monalisa most popular?
The single biggest year for Monalisa was 1965, when 37 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Monalisa is about 43 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Monalisa a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Monalisa 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.