Nevada
A Spanish-derived name referring to snow-capped mountains or snowy terrain.
Name Census estimates that about 2,417 living Americans carry the first name Nevada. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 81.6% of registrations being female. The average person named Nevada today is around 32 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Nevada births was 1995 (74 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Nevada. 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 Nevada with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
2.4K
~ 1 in 141,810 Americans
Peak year
1995
74 babies that year
Average age
32
years old
2024 SSA rank
#4,005
Tracked since 1880
Census
Nevada in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 2,144 people with the first name Nevada, which placed it at #7,188 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
#7,188
National first-name rank
People counted
2.1K
2,144 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.7
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
67.4% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Nevada
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Nevada is White at 67.4%. The next largest groups are Black (15.4%) and Hispanic (7.3%). 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 Nevada 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 Nevada at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White67.4% · 1,446
- Black or African American15.4% · 330
- Hispanic or Latino7.3% · 156
- Two or more races6.2% · 133
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.8% · 61
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 18
Gender
Gender distribution for Nevada
Nevada leans heavily female at 81.6% of total registrations, but 710 boys have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Nevada as a male name
- Ranked #7,570 in 2024
- 11 male births in 2024
- Peak: 1995 (30 births)
Nevada as a female name
- Ranked #4,005 in 2024
- 37 female births in 2024
- Peak: 2003 (60 births)
2020 Census snapshot
The 2020 Census sex table shows Nevada on both sides of the split. Of the 2,148 people counted with this name, 593 were male (27.6%) and 1,555 were female (72.4%).
Popularity
Nevada: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Nevada from the 1880s through to the 2020s, spanning 15 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 569 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2000s peak, Nevada remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Nevada 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 Nevada during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Nevadas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 15 states and territories. Kentucky, California, Pennsylvania recorded the most babies named Nevada, while West Virginia, North Dakota, Minnesota recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 15 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Nevada
The name Nevada is derived from the Spanish word "nevada," which means "snow-covered" or "snowy." This name was given to the U.S. state of Nevada due to its mountainous terrain and snowy peaks. The name itself originated from the Spanish language and has its roots in the Latin word "nivatus," meaning "covered with snow."
The earliest recorded use of the name Nevada can be traced back to the 19th century when it was designated as the name of the U.S. state in 1864. However, the name itself was likely used by Spanish explorers and settlers in the region long before it became an official state name.
In terms of historical references, the name Nevada does not appear to have any significant mentions in ancient texts, religious scriptures, or historical records prior to its association with the U.S. state. It is primarily a modern name that gained prominence in the 19th century.
Throughout history, there have been a few notable individuals with the first name Nevada. One of the earliest recorded individuals was Nevada Seminole (1892-1979), a member of the Seminole Tribe of Florida and a prominent figure in the preservation of Seminole culture and traditions.
Another notable figure was Nevada Leroy Douglass (1905-1974), an American politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from Washington state from 1937 to 1943.
Nevada Rae Browning (1932-2008) was an American actress and singer who appeared in several films and television shows during the mid-20th century.
Nevada Smith (born 1947), whose real name is Steven Patrick Kilbey, is an Australian rock musician and singer-songwriter, best known as the lead singer and co-founder of the band The Church.
Nevada Caeden (born 1987) is an American singer and songwriter, known for her work in the genres of pop and R&B.
While the name Nevada may have been inspired by the snowy landscapes of the American West, it has also gained popularity as a unique and distinctive name for individuals around the world, transcending its geographical origins.
People
Nevada + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Nevada 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
Nevada: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Nevada?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 2,417 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Nevada 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 141,810 US residents.
Is Nevada a common name?
We classify Nevada as "Rare". It ranks above 94.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 3,858 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Nevada most popular?
The single biggest year for Nevada was 1995, when 74 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Nevada is about 32 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Nevada in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 2,144 people with the name Nevada, or 0.71 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #7,188 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 Nevada 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 Nevada?
The 2020 Census sex table shows Nevada on both sides of the split. Of the 2,148 people counted with this name, 593 were male (27.6%) and 1,555 were female (72.4%). 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 Nevada?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Nevada is White at 67.4%. The next largest groups are Black (15.4%) and Hispanic (7.3%). 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 Nevada most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Nevada in the 2020 Census, accounting for 67.4% (1,446 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 Nevada in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Nevada a female name?
Yes, 81.6% of people registered as Nevada 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 Nevada still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Nevada 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 Nevada 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 have the name Nevada?
For a quick modern take, check how many people share the name Nevada on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.