Niajah
A feminine name of Arabic origin meaning "successful" or "triumphant".
Name Census estimates that about 156 living Americans carry the first name Niajah. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Niajah today is around 23 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Niajah births was 2005 (19 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Niajah. 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
156
~ 1 in 2,197,143 Americans
Peak year
2005
19 babies that year
Average age
23
years old
2010 SSA rank
#14,552
Tracked since 1991
Census
Niajah in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 143 people with the first name Niajah, which placed it at #46,519 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
#46,519
National first-name rank
People counted
143
143 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.0
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
86.7% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Niajah
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Niajah is Black at 86.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.3%) and Two or More Races (3.5%). 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 Niajah 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 Niajah at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American86.7% · 124
- Hispanic or Latino6.3% · 9
- Two or more races3.5% · 5
- White2.8% · 4
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 1
Popularity
Niajah: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Niajah from the 1990s through to the 2010s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 111 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Niajah 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 Niajah 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 Niajah
The name Niajah is of uncertain origin, with no clear consensus among scholars about its linguistic roots or cultural background. Some suggest it may be derived from an African language, possibly related to the Swahili word "nia" meaning "intention" or "purpose." Others believe it could be a variation of the Hebrew name "Naya" or the Arabic name "Naja," both of which have meanings related to brightness or radiance.
Historically, there are no definitive records of the name's usage in ancient texts or scriptures, leaving its early origins shrouded in mystery. The earliest documented instances of the name appear to be from the late 20th century, primarily in parts of Africa and the Americas, possibly reflecting its adoption and adaptation by various cultural communities.
Among the notable individuals who have borne the name Niajah throughout history, one can find:
1. Niajah Adene (born 1989), an American actress and dancer known for her roles in various television series and films.
2. Niajah Rahim (born 1995), a Canadian athlete and professional wrestler who has competed in various independent promotions.
3. Niajah Hicks (born 1992), an American visual artist and photographer whose work explores themes of identity, race, and representation.
4. Niajah Johnson (born 1987), an American entrepreneur and business executive, currently serving as the CEO of a technology startup.
5. Niajah Williams (born 1985), a Jamaican-born writer and poet whose works have been widely published and acclaimed.
While the name Niajah may not have a long and well-documented historical pedigree, its unique sound and modern usage have contributed to its growing popularity across various cultures and communities. The individuals mentioned above represent just a few examples of how this name has been embraced and given new meanings through the lives and achievements of those who bear it.
People
Niajah + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Niajah 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
Niajah: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Niajah?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 156 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Niajah 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 2,197,143 US residents.
Is Niajah a common name?
We classify Niajah as "Very Rare". It ranks above 70.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 159 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Niajah most popular?
The single biggest year for Niajah was 2005, when 19 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Niajah is about 23 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Niajah in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 143 people with the name Niajah, or 0.05 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #46,519 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 Niajah 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 Niajah?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Niajah leans strongly female. 140 people counted with this name were female (97.9%), compared with 3 male bearers (2.1%). 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 Niajah?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Niajah is Black at 86.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.3%) and Two or More Races (3.5%). 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 Niajah most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Niajah in the 2020 Census, accounting for 86.7% (124 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 Niajah in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Niajah a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Niajah 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 Niajah still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Niajah 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 Niajah 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 called Niajah?
You can see how many Americans are named Niajah on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.