Penne
A feminine name of Italian origin referring to a type of pasta.
Name Census estimates that about 334 living Americans carry the first name Penne. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Penne today is around 68 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Penne births was 1962 (93 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Penne. 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
- • The typical person named Penne is about 68 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Pennes were born before 1968.
People living today
334
~ 1 in 1,026,211 Americans
Peak year
1962
93 babies that year
Average age
68
years old
1971 SSA rank
#9,236
Tracked since 1939
Census
Penne in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 452 people with the first name Penne, which placed it at #22,141 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
#22,141
National first-name rank
People counted
452
452 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
92.0% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Penne
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Penne is White at 92.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.0%) and Black (1.8%). 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 Penne 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 Penne at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.0% · 416
- Two or more races2.0% · 9
- Black or African American1.8% · 8
- Hispanic or Latino1.8% · 8
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.5% · 7
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 4
Popularity
Penne: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Penne from the 1930s through to the 1970s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1960s, with 226 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
Penne 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 Penne during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Pennes live
The SSA's state-level files cover 4 states and territories. Texas, Tennessee, Illinois recorded the most babies named Penne, while Mississippi, Illinois, Tennessee recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 14 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Penne
The name Penne is derived from the Italian word "penna," which means "feather" or "pen." The name has its roots in the Italian language and culture, with its earliest recorded use dating back to the 16th century.
During the Renaissance period in Italy, the quill pen was widely used for writing and calligraphy. The name Penne may have been given to individuals who were skilled in the art of writing or calligraphy, or perhaps to those who worked as scribes or copyists. It is possible that the name was initially a nickname or occupational surname before becoming a given name.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Penne was Penne Antonio, an Italian painter and engraver who lived in the late 16th century. While little is known about his life, his works of art have been preserved in various collections across Italy.
In the 17th century, Penne Giovanna was a notable Italian poet and playwright. Born in 1620 in Venice, she was renowned for her literary works, which often explored themes of love and the human condition. Her plays were performed in various theaters across Italy during her lifetime.
Moving into the 18th century, Penne Leonardo was an Italian architect and engineer who made significant contributions to the design and construction of several iconic buildings and structures in Rome. Born in 1725, his most notable works include the Palazzo Doria Pamphilj and the Fontana del Tritone.
In the 19th century, Penne Francesca was an Italian artist and sculptor who specialized in creating intricate marble sculptures. Born in 1810 in Florence, her works were widely celebrated and can be found in various museums and galleries throughout Italy.
Lastly, Penne Gabriele was an Italian composer and musician who lived during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Born in 1875 in Naples, he composed several operas and orchestral works that were performed in theaters across Europe. His compositions were known for their melodic beauty and emotional depth.
While the name Penne may not be as common today, it holds a rich history and cultural significance, particularly in Italy, where it has been associated with individuals who excelled in various artistic and creative pursuits throughout the centuries.
People
Penne + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Penne as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with P
Other first names starting with P with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Penne: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Penne?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 334 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Penne 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 1,026,211 US residents.
Is Penne a common name?
We classify Penne as "Very Rare". It ranks above 80.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 485 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Penne most popular?
The single biggest year for Penne was 1962, when 93 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Penne is about 68 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Penne in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 452 people with the name Penne, or 0.15 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #22,141 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 Penne 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 Penne?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Penne leans strongly female. 448 people counted with this name were female (98.7%), compared with 6 male bearers (1.3%). 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 Penne?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Penne is White at 92.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.0%) and Black (1.8%). 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 Penne most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Penne in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.0% (416 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 Penne in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Penne a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Penne 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 Penne still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Penne 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 Penne 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 Penne?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.