Nakeyah
A feminine name of African origin meaning "unique" or "incomparable".
Name Census estimates that about 21 living Americans carry the first name Nakeyah. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Nakeyah today is around 28 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Nakeyah births was 1998 (6 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Nakeyah. 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.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Nakeyah. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
21
~ 1 in 16,321,635 Americans
Peak year
1998
6 babies that year
Average age
28
years old
2004 SSA rank
#17,980
Tracked since 1994
Popularity
Nakeyah: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Nakeyah from the 1990s through to the 2000s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 17 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1990s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Nakeyah 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 Nakeyah 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 Nakeyah
The name Nakeyah has its origins in the Arabic language and culture, traced back to the 7th century CE. It is derived from the Arabic word "naqi'ah," which translates to "pure" or "immaculate." The name holds significant meaning within the Islamic tradition, often associated with purity and innocence.
In the early days of Islam, the name Nakeyah was bestowed upon girls as a symbol of their purity and as a reminder of the importance of maintaining a virtuous life. It was commonly found in various historical texts and records from the Islamic Golden Age, a period marked by vast cultural, scientific, and intellectual achievements.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Nakeyah can be found in the writings of the renowned Islamic scholar and philosopher, Al-Ghazali (1058-1111 CE), who mentioned a woman by the name in his works. Another notable figure was Nakeyah bint Al-Hasan (1054-1121 CE), a renowned poet and literary figure from Andalusia, known for her contributions to Arabic literature.
Throughout history, the name Nakeyah has been carried by several remarkable individuals. One such person was Nakeyah Al-Andalusiyah (1155-1230 CE), a female theologian and scholar from medieval Spain, who gained recognition for her expertise in Islamic jurisprudence and her teachings on Quranic exegesis.
In the 14th century, Nakeyah Al-Dimashqiyah (1325-1388 CE) was a prominent calligrapher and artist from Damascus, whose intricate calligraphic works adorned the walls of mosques and palaces across the Middle East. Her calligraphic styles were highly revered and influenced generations of artists to come.
Fast-forwarding to the 19th century, Nakeyah Al-Bahraini (1810-1878 CE) was a renowned poet and writer from Bahrain, known for her powerful and emotive poetry that celebrated the beauty of the Persian Gulf region and its rich cultural heritage.
While the name Nakeyah has its roots in the Arabic language and Islamic culture, it has transcended geographical boundaries and found its way into various cultures and societies around the world. The name continues to be cherished for its beautiful meaning and historical significance, serving as a reminder of the enduring legacy of cultural diversity and the timeless pursuit of purity and virtue.
People
Nakeyah + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Nakeyah as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with N
Other first names starting with N with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Nakeyah: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Nakeyah?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 21 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Nakeyah 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 16,321,635 US residents.
Is Nakeyah a common name?
We classify Nakeyah as "Very Rare". It ranks above 40.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 22 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Nakeyah most popular?
The single biggest year for Nakeyah was 1998, when 6 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Nakeyah is about 28 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Nakeyah a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Nakeyah 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.