Ponce
A Spanish masculine name meaning "lion-like".
Name Census estimates that about 90 living Americans carry the first name Ponce. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Ponce today is around 64 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Ponce births was 1949 (8 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Ponce. 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 Ponce. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
90
~ 1 in 3,808,382 Americans
Peak year
1949
8 babies that year
Average age
64
years old
1986 SSA rank
#7,536
Tracked since 1916
Popularity
Ponce: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Ponce from the 1910s through to the 1980s, spanning 8 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1960s, with 37 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
Ponce 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 Ponce 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 Ponce
The name Ponce is of Spanish origin, derived from the Latin name "Pontius." It is believed to have its roots in the Roman family name "Poncius" or "Pontius," which originated from the Latin word "pons," meaning "bridge." The name may have been given to individuals who lived near or were associated with bridges or bridge construction.
During the Middle Ages, the name Ponce gained popularity in Spain, particularly in the region of Aragon. One of the earliest recorded individuals with this name was Ponce de Minerva, a 12th-century nobleman and military leader from Aragon. He played a significant role in the Reconquista, the Christian reconquest of the Iberian Peninsula from the Moors.
In the 13th century, Ponce de Cabrera was a prominent Spanish nobleman and military commander who served under King Alfonso X of Castile. He was instrumental in the conquest of Murcia and participated in various campaigns against the Moors.
Another notable figure with the name Ponce was Juan Ponce de León, a Spanish explorer and conquistador born in 1474. He is famous for his expeditions to the Americas, including the first recorded European exploration of Florida in 1513. Ponce de León was also the first governor of Puerto Rico.
In the 16th century, Ponce de Santillana was a Spanish nobleman, poet, and patron of the arts. He is considered one of the most important literary figures of the Spanish Renaissance and is credited with introducing Italian Renaissance poetry to Spain.
During the 17th century, Ponce de León y Espino was a Spanish military officer and governor of Florida. He played a crucial role in the defense of St. Augustine, the oldest continuously occupied European settlement in the continental United States, against British and Native American attacks.
These are just a few examples of notable individuals throughout history who bore the name Ponce. While its origins can be traced back to ancient Rome, the name gained prominence in Spain during the Middle Ages and was carried by many influential figures, particularly during the era of Spanish exploration and conquest.
People
Ponce + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Ponce 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
Ponce: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Ponce?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 90 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Ponce 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 3,808,382 US residents.
Is Ponce a common name?
We classify Ponce as "Very Rare". It ranks above 63% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 140 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Ponce most popular?
The single biggest year for Ponce was 1949, when 8 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Ponce is about 64 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Ponce a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Ponce in the SSA data are male. 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.