Necia
A feminine name of Spanish origin meaning "simple, naive, foolish".
Name Census estimates that about 443 living Americans carry the first name Necia. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Necia today is around 55 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Necia births was 1964 (18 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Necia. 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
443
~ 1 in 773,712 Americans
Peak year
1964
18 babies that year
Average age
55
years old
2009 SSA rank
#19,380
Tracked since 1910
Census
Necia in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 564 people with the first name Necia, which placed it at #18,965 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
#18,965
National first-name rank
People counted
564
564 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
73.6% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Necia
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Necia is White at 73.6%. The next largest groups are Black (15.2%) and Two or More Races (4.8%). 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 Necia 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 Necia at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White73.6% · 415
- Black or African American15.2% · 86
- Two or more races4.8% · 27
- Hispanic or Latino4.1% · 23
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.1% · 12
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 1
Popularity
Necia: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Necia from the 1910s through to the 2000s, spanning 10 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1970s, with 119 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1970s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Necia 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 Necia during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Necias live
Origin
Meaning and history of Necia
The name Necia has its origins in Latin and stems from the word "nescia," which means "ignorant" or "unaware." This name gained popularity during the Middle Ages, particularly in regions where Latin was widely used, such as Italy and parts of Western Europe.
One of the earliest known references to the name Necia can be found in medieval Latin texts, where it was used to describe individuals who were considered naive or lacking in knowledge. It was not uncommon for names during this period to reflect certain character traits or aspirations.
In the 13th century, there are records of a nun named Necia di Montefalco (1268-1306), who was known for her mystical visions and later canonized as a saint in the Catholic Church. Her life and supposed miracles were documented in various hagiographies, further perpetuating the use of the name.
Another notable figure bearing the name Necia was Necia de León (c. 1505-1565), a Spanish noblewoman and patron of the arts during the Renaissance period. She was known for her patronage of writers and artists, and her influence in the cultural circles of her time.
During the 16th century, the name Necia appeared in literary works, such as the play "La Celestina" by Fernando de Rojas, where one of the characters was named Necia. This work is considered a masterpiece of Spanish literature and contributed to the name's recognition.
In the 18th century, Necia Dussauzay (1734-1801) was a French actress and opera singer who gained fame for her performances in Paris. She was a prominent figure in the theatrical circles of her time and her name was recorded in various playbills and reviews.
Over the centuries, the name Necia has been used across different cultures and regions, though its popularity has waxed and waned. While it may not be as common in modern times, its historical roots and associations with literature, arts, and religion have left an indelible mark on its legacy.
People
Necia + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Necia 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
Necia: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Necia?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 443 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Necia 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 773,712 US residents.
Is Necia a common name?
We classify Necia as "Very Rare". It ranks above 83.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 675 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Necia most popular?
The single biggest year for Necia was 1964, when 18 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Necia is about 55 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Necia in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 564 people with the name Necia, or 0.19 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #18,965 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 Necia 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 Necia?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Necia leans strongly female. 573 people counted with this name were female (99.0%), compared with 6 male bearers (1.0%). 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 Necia?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Necia is White at 73.6%. The next largest groups are Black (15.2%) and Two or More Races (4.8%). 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 Necia most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Necia in the 2020 Census, accounting for 73.6% (415 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 Necia in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Necia a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Necia 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 Necia still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Necia 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 Necia 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 share the name Necia?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.